Here’s proof that it doesn’t matter how old you are — we’re all kids at heart.
In August, a group of ADT employees helped celebrate the company’s 150th birthday by volunteering at The Birthday Party Project headquarters in Dallas, wrapping birthday gifts for kids in low-income housing or who are facing homelessness. When the nonprofit’s organizers told the ADT volunteers to pick a child’s wish list and go “shopping” down the aisles of a warehouse filled with donated toys, eyes lit up and smiles grew.
“It’s just a lot of fun, to be able to do this for someone,” said Sheneka Georges, an ADT Team Manager. “I shopped for a couple of kids. One was 14 and another was five. I think I did OK, so I hope they’re really, really happy with the gifts they get.”
The Birthday Party Project relies on donations of toys and time from volunteers to make the magic happen for the kids they support.
“This is so critically important for not just the mental health, but the social development of these kids,” said Annamarie Saavedra, Director of Development and Strategic Partnerships at The Birthday Party Project. “They’re going through such a really difficult time in their life. If not for The Birthday Party Project, these kids would very likely go uncelebrated on their birthday. It is important for us that all kids feel seen, known and celebrated, especially on their birthday.”
As part of ADT’s 150th birthday celebration, the company funded all 21 of The Birthday Party Project’s parties for the month of August. If a party can’t be hosted on-site, the organization supplies “Birthdays in a Box” to its partner programs, which include all the makings of a party — streamers, balloons, goodie bags, birthday cake mix and special birthday badges to help the kids feel special. In this way, 244 kids were able to celebrate their birthdays, sponsored by ADT.
ADT employees in the Dallas area helped at the party for several children at Interfaith Family Services. All families receiving services from that organization were invited to participate. The kids did crafts, posed for photos, ate pizza and were in awe when a Dallas fire station brought its fire engine by for a tour, parking next to two ADT technician vans.
“My kids make sure that they’re at every single party,” said Felicia Melton, a mother of four. “It’s one of the things that I look for every month, so we appreciate it. Everyone gets their month to feel special. It’s just absolutely beautiful.”
ADT teamed up with The Birthday Party Project thanks to an employee’s desire to make a difference. Tiffany Galarza, ADT’s Senior Director of Telecommunications, saw the nonprofit on the news and volunteered for her own birthday. When it was time to celebrate 150 years of ADT, she knew it would be a great way for the company to pay it forward.
“ADT is all about giving back, protecting people and making them feel safe,” Galarza said. “The people who are in these centers are in a place where they can feel safe; but they also want to feel joy. At ADT, we believe that everyone deserves to feel safe. Everyone deserves to feel joy, too.”
If you’d like to donate to The Birthday Party Project, visit its website to learn more.