Meet Andrea Gibson of Giving Birthdays

Today we’d like to introduce you to Andrea Gibson. 

Hi Andrea, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstories with our readers.
I was born and raised in Tiffin, Ohio where I currently reside with my husband, three children, two nieces, and our pup. I graduated from Tiffin University with a Bachelors of Business Administration in Organizational Management with a concentration in Marketing. I have been working at the Sandusky County Economic Development Corporation (SCEDC) for almost 8 years as the Communications and Project Administrator. Throughout my time at the SCEDC, I have been involved with the community in several capacities and served on several committees and boards. In 2016, along with other like-minded individuals founded the Sandusky County Young Professionals Group. The Sandusky County Young Professionals Group was a passion of mine until I found my purpose in Giving Birthdays. 

After going from a family of 5 to a family of 8 in a moment’s notice when asked to become a kinship caregiver, my passion quickly turned as I began to learn of the struggles and adversity that our most vulnerable youth face. Through the kinship care process, I learned how common it is for children who are entering foster or kinship care to never get a chance to celebrate their birthdays or other milestones prior to going into care. This is when the idea of Giving Birthdays was developed and launched within three months in Sandusky County. 

I have received the 20 under 40 Toledo Leadership Award in 2022, Young Leader of the Year award from the Sandusky County Young Professionals Group, Clark ambassador of the Year Award in 2020 from the Sandusky County Chamber of Commerce, and I have been nominated for the 2023 Citizen of the Year from the Chamber of Commerce. 

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Our biggest struggle has been funding the Giving Birthdays program. Since we are a new organization, it takes some time to get our name out there, and that is understandable. I have a great board of directors, family, and friends that really are driving forces to help share our organization on their social media pages which in turn, will result in individual sponsorships. It is because of our community members that we have been able to celebrate 100% of the birthdays that have been referred to us! On a personal note, you do not realize what needs to be improved with “the system” until you are in it. You don’t know about resources that are available to you, and there are a lot of things that you just question. I wrote letters to just about every politician on the state level about our journey as kinship caregivers and our concerns. We received help almost immediately and had a Zoom with someone from the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services. 

My husband and I have a wonderful support system around us. However, not every caregiver has that support. Not every caregiver has an additional $100 that can be budgeted for a birthday celebration. Especially when thinking about the rest of their cost of living that has just gone up by adding more family members into their home. 

So, although we may not be able to financially help other caregivers, I knew that I could at least help pool resources and relieve this one thing off of the caregivers plate, and most importantly let the youth in care know that they are so worthy of a celebration, not just on their birthday, but every day of the year. 

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Giving Birthdays is a 501c3 nonprofit with the mission to provide youth in foster and kinship care the opportunity to celebrate their birthday and make a birthday wish! 

Giving Birthdays, Inc provides birthday celebrations to youth turning one to twenty-one in foster and kinship care. This party in a box includes a birthday cake, candles, napkins, plates, banner, and birthday presents. Each box is customized with their dreams, talents, career interests and of course, wishes. By providing these birthday celebrations we are letting our most vulnerable youth know that they are special and worthy of a celebration, as well as providing support to their caregivers. I started the program in January of 2021 and provided 53 of Sandusky County’s most vulnerable youth a birthday celebration throughout the first year. In 2022 we merged into Wood County and celebrated 130 birthdays between Sandusky County and Wood County. For 2023, we are expanding into Seneca County and Erie County and have already dropped off over 20 celebrations to the County Job and Family Services departments for January of 2023. 

Through community support of donated items and monetary donations, we can provide quality celebrations for all on a shoestring budget. 

How do you define success?
I know that Giving Birthdays is a success when we receive a postcard or email and picture back from one of our youth or caregivers that we have served. These youth deserve all of the extra sunshine and sweetness in their life. Even if we fulfill 300 birthdays this coming year and only receive 1 email or postcard back, that 1 email or postcard will be enough for us to keep going. 

Contact Info:

• Website: https://givingbirthdaysohio.org/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/givingbirthdays/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GivingBirthdays/
• Other: https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=BYZUMSSHC8LLG

Image Credits
Andrea Gibson