Showing a child someone cares
By Ryan O’Reilly, Editor, Zephyrhills News

Perhaps a simple "Happy Birthday" card is something many of us take for granted. But for thousands of foster children in Florida and across the nation, there is no one to celebrate what should be a joyous occasion. However, one local company is trying to make a difference in the young lives of these kids.

"While some children in foster care reside with foster families who give them wonderful birthday celebrations, or don’t celebrate their birthdays by choice since the day may hold painful memories or trigger powerful emotions about their birth families, many other foster children never know what it means to celebrate their birthdays," said M.J. Price, president of Goin’ Postal, a nationwide shipping franchise that started in Zephyrhills. "Those foster children don’t get to blow out candles on a cake, no one sings ‘Happy Birthday’ to them, and oftentimes there are no cards or presents to open."

Because of this, Price says that Goin’ Postal’s across the nation will begin collecting birthday cards for these children. Each month, the store owners and their staff will send customized, purchased, or homemade cards to specific children by first name who are in foster care in their county or region. The program was just launched last week on May 16.

"Today is a foster child’s birthday," Price added, "but without a card or someone to wish him or her ‘Happy Birthday,’ he or she may never know that someone cares that today is a very special day. And The Goin’ Postal Family believes that all children should feel wanted, appreciated, and loved.

"You can make handmade cards for the children. You can sign store-bought cards that you have purchased and then mail them to the local foster care system which we can provide the address to. Or, you can have Goin’ Postal send your cards for you free of charge as part of the packet of cards that the store owner sends to local agencies each month," explained Price.

To obtain a list of children to send birthday cards to, you may stop by the local Goin’ Postal located in downtown Zephyrhills at 38439 Fifth Ave. or you can visit the Heart Gallery Web sites, which also provides lists of local foster children, at www.heartgallerypinellaspasco.org/heart/, heartgallerysarasota.org/, or www.heartgallerytampabay.org/. The Heart Gallery Pasco is a museum-quality exhibit of professional portraits featuring the faces, voices and stories of foster children who long for permanent homes. The hope is that visitors to the gallery will be touched and will take steps towards adoption or sponsorship.

Photos by Ryan O'Reilly