<div><strong>For My 40th Birthday, I Have One Wish</strong>
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<div>In 2023, I boarded a plane to Kenya not knowing what I was looking for.
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<div>I just knew I felt broken.
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<div>Earlier that year, I lost my uncle to suicide. I was grieving in a way I did not have words for. I was struggling to feel anything except the weight of that tragedy. And somewhere in that heaviness, I got on a plane to spend time with orphans.
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<div>What I found on the other side changed me.
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<div><strong>They Were Not What I Expected</strong>
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<div>I expected to give something.
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<div>I did not expect to receive everything.
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<div>The children I met were orphans. They lived simply. No phones. No toys. No computers. Nothing most of us would consider basic. And yet from the moment I walked through that gate, they ran toward me with open arms and the widest smiles I have ever seen on a human face.
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<div>We danced. All of us, together, in a way I had not danced since I was a little girl. They laughed and pulled me in and did not let go. And somewhere in that circle, something in me that had been closed for months quietly opened back up.
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<div>I had brought protein bars with me. Not nearly enough for all the children. So I broke each one into the smallest pieces I could. And those children — those beautiful, resilient children — were more excited over a tiny crumb of a protein bar than many children here would be over an entire birthday cake.
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<div>It was not about the snack.
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<div>It never is with them.
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<div>It was about presence. About gratitude. About finding real joy in the smallest detail. They were teaching me, and they did not even know it.
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<div><strong>The Moment I Cannot Forget</strong>
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<div>At the end of my ten days, we held each other in a huddle — and we cried.
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<div>I remember standing there wishing I could fit all sixty of them into my suitcase and bring them home. It was so difficult to part ways that I even missed the bus.
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<div>One little girl stayed with me long after I left Kenya. She told me she runs as fast as she can around the compound every single day. Every day, she runs. Hoping someone will see how fast she is. Hoping someone will notice her.
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<div>She called it being rescued.
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<div>But when I look at her, I do not see a child who needs rescuing.
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<div>I see a child who needs a chance.
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<div><strong>What Is Happening Right Now</strong>
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<div>Right now, 60 of these children are not in school.
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<div>Not because they don't want to be. But because tuition could not be paid in time due to lack of resources. And when that happens, they are sent home. They wait. Sometimes partial funding arrives and they return. Then the cycle starts again.
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<div>It has been this way for years.
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<div>Tuition per child is about $125 per term. One term. One chance to sit in a classroom, learn something new, and not wonder if today is the day they get sent home again.
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<div>To bring all 60 children back for one full, stable, uninterrupted term costs $7,500.
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<div>That is my birthday wish.
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<div><strong>How You Can Be Part of This</strong>
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<div>This is the best gift anyone could ever give me.
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<div>I am asking for something that will last far longer than anything I could unwrap.
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<div>And here is how you can join me:
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<div><strong>$25</strong> — Part of one student's term
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<div><strong>$50</strong> — Meaningful support toward tuition
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<div><strong>$125</strong> — One full term for one child
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<div><strong>$375 </strong>— One full year for one child
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<div><strong><em>Any</em> amount — Every single dollar moves us forward</strong>
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<div>If 60 people give $125, every child goes back.
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<div>If 300 people give $25, we get there together.
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<div>Either way, we get there.
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<div><strong>And If Giving Is Not Possible Right Now</strong>
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<div>I understand that not everyone is in a position to give financially, and I mean that sincerely. But if this story moved you at all, there is something else you can do that <strong>costs nothing and means everything</strong>.
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<div><strong>Share this.</strong>
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<div>One share could reach the exact person who has been looking for something meaningful to give to. One share could be the thing that brings a child back to school. You never know whose hands this will land in or what they are capable of when they feel moved.
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<div>So if you cannot give today, please share. Share it on your page, send it to a friend, text it to someone who has a generous heart.
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<div>That is enough. That matters. And I am grateful for it either way.
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<div><strong>A Few Things I Want You to Know</strong>
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<div>Each school has a finance department that issues receipts. Every receipt will be documented and shared in campaign updates so you always know exactly where your contribution went.
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<div>This campaign covers tuition only. Not transport. Not supplies. Not clothes.
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<div>But stability first. That is where we begin.
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<div>This is not currently a registered nonprofit, so donations are not tax-deductible. I want to be honest with you about that. What I can promise you is full transparency, consistent updates, and a commitment to building something sustainable for these children over time.
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<div><strong>Why This Matters</strong>
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<div>These children are not defined by being orphans.
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<div>They are defined by how fast that little girl runs around that compound every single day, still believing someone will notice.
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<div>They are defined by the way they welcomed a grieving stranger with dancing and laughter and zero hesitation.
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<div>They are defined by joy that circumstance has not been able to touch.
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<div>They deserve the same simple opportunity that most of us received without ever having to ask for it.
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<div>For my 40th birthday, I am choosing to celebrate by trying to give it to them.
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<div>If something in this story moved you, trust that feeling.
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<div>Join me.
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<div><em>Exchange rates may fluctuate slightly. All funds go directly to tuition. Updates and receipts will be shared throughout the campaign.</em>
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Danielle Grosso

Elizabeth Baez

Kimberly Ramsey

Stacey Redmond

Cynthia Galas

Sara-May Colón

Daniel Uyemura

Christine LoPresti

Maryna Litvinka

Keila Castilo

Sonia Datwani

Marivel Somoza

Marlene Castillo

Adrian Hernandez

Cristina Balderama

Send Children Back to School for My 40th Birthday

Send Children Back to School for My 40th Birthday

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