Share Your Wish https://shareyourwish.com teach ★ share ★ inspire Wed, 07 Feb 2024 17:01:49 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://shareyourwish.com/content/uploads/2018/08/cropped-syw_footer_logo-32x32.png Share Your Wish https://shareyourwish.com 32 32 Share Your Wish is helping to End Allergies Together https://shareyourwish.com/share-your-wish-is-helping-to-end-allergies-together/ Wed, 13 Dec 2017 17:23:21 +0000 https://shareyourwish.com/share-your-wish-is-helping-to-end-allergies-together/    End Allergies Together was founded by 2 mothers of children with multiple life-threatening food allergies. Facing the striking realization that very little public or private funds were being invested to solve this epidemic, they created EAT to address the gap.    1 in 12 is diagnosed with food allergies and in the past 25 […]

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   End Allergies Together was founded by 2 mothers of children with multiple life-threatening food allergies. Facing the striking realization that very little public or private funds were being invested to solve this epidemic, they created EAT to address the gap.

   1 in 12 is diagnosed with food allergies and in the past 25 years this major heath issue has skyrocketed, effecting 220 million people globally. At EAT, we raise money to invest in leading research around the world to accelerate treatments and cures.  

   Every member of EAT is personally effected by life-threatening food allergies. We are passionate in our resolve and have underwritten administrative costs so over 90% of each dollar donated has gone to the most promising research.

   One of the most stressful times for a child with food allergies is a birthday celebration. It’s often hard for them to eat freely and enjoy those events as young children should be able to do. We love the empowerment Share Your Wish gives them to turn that experience into a positive one!

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Book Fairies – creating a fairy tale story by providing books to communities in need https://shareyourwish.com/book-fairies-creating-a-fairy-tale-story-by-providing-books-to-communities-in-need/ Mon, 20 Nov 2017 17:29:38 +0000 https://shareyourwish.com/book-fairies-creating-a-fairy-tale-story-by-providing-books-to-communities-in-need/   Share Your Wish is fortunate to have incredible charities listed on our website.  What’s even more special is when we can meet the people who started some of these amazing organizations and learn more about their passion. We had the opportunity to meet Amy, the founder of Book Fairies.  Amy is making certain that […]

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Share Your Wish is fortunate to have incredible charities listed on our website.  What’s even more special is when we can meet the people who started some of these amazing organizations and learn more about their passion.

We had the opportunity to meet Amy, the founder of Book Fairies.  Amy is making certain that children in low income school districtshave access to quality books so that they can develop a love of reading.  Most children she meets have fewer than 10 books in their homes.  Could you imagine your child walking into their classroom with barely any books in it?  How are children supposed to learn to read if they don’t have quality books?

During my visit, Book Fairies opened their doors to teachers in high need school districts.  She gave them a chance to “shop” for the books they need to start classroom and home libraries in order to engage their students with high-interest, age-appropriate books.  In just 3 hours, more than 12,000 books were taken!  This brings the total of books they have donated to underprivileged schools and nonprofits to over 900,000.  Think of all the children this has helped.

 
Thank you again to Amy and everyone at Book Fairies for the amazing things you do for children!  Please visit their site and learn more about how you can get involved.  You can also support them by selecting them as your charity to support via Share Your Wish.
 
 

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Alexandra’s Playground gets pure satisfaction out of seeing the joy their playgrounds bring to kids faces https://shareyourwish.com/alexandra-s-playground-gets-pure-satisfaction-out-of-seeing-the-joy-their-playgrounds-bring-to-kids-faces/ Mon, 06 Feb 2017 17:20:40 +0000 https://shareyourwish.com/alexandra-s-playground-gets-pure-satisfaction-out-of-seeing-the-joy-their-playgrounds-bring-to-kids-faces/ Smiles, giggles, and expressions of pure joy were on the faces of the children at Our Lady of Mount Carmel School last year when they saw their new playground for the first time. Their school had waited over 90 years for a playground! Today they climb, play, and explore safely with their friends and classmates […]

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Smiles, giggles, and expressions of pure joy were on the faces of the children at Our Lady of Mount Carmel School last year when they saw their new playground for the first time. Their school had waited over 90 years for a playground! Today they climb, play, and explore safely with their friends and classmates during recess, after school, and all summer long.

Before we donated and built the playground for this inner city Asbury Park, NJ community, some of the students had only been to a playground once a year, while on a school trip. Once a year! We believe that all children should have the opportunity for safe and active play. So we have been donating playgrounds and programs since 2009. To date, we have built 21 playgrounds across the United States – primarily in the NY-NJ-CT tri-state area, and including five in Haiti, and one in Afghanistan. And we’ve got plans for more this year!

At our core Alexandra’s Playground is about two things – providing opportunities for children who wouldn’t otherwise have them, and positively impacting the world the way we know that Alexandra would have. One of the most beautiful ways these goals come together is when children reach out to make a difference for other children, just like the children who use Share Your Wish to celebrate their birthdays. And like the children in Asbury Park, NJ who were very grateful for their donated playground, so they raised money to help us to bring a playground to the next community. And the young girl in Paterson, NJ who learned first hand how we can all help each other – she was very thankful for the new Alexandra’s Playground at her school and said “I would do the same thing to help support and give someone something that they need”.

Share your Wish has made the generous offer to make a donation to Alexandra’s Playground in honor of every SYW Birthday Party that is booked during the month of February, no matter which month your party will be celebrated in. In honor of Alexandra’s birthday this month, we hope you will plan a Share Your Wish celebration.

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Booked Parties does all the planning for your child’s birthday, so you don’t have to! https://shareyourwish.com/booked-parties-does-all-the-planning-for-your-child-s-birthday-so-you-don-t-have-to/ Tue, 31 May 2016 16:33:15 +0000 https://shareyourwish.com/booked-parties-does-all-the-planning-for-your-child-s-birthday-so-you-don-t-have-to/ “After moving to Westchester in 2012 with two young children, I found myself quickly immersed into the birthday party circuit.  As a newcomer to the area, I relied on referrals from friends or spent my time browsing through social media boards for recommendations when it came to planning my own children’s birthday parties.   I […]

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“After moving to Westchester in 2012 with two young children, I found myself quickly immersed into the birthday party circuit.  As a newcomer to the area, I relied on referrals from friends or spent my time browsing through social media boards for recommendations when it came to planning my own children’s birthday parties.

 

I realized that there had to be an easier way, so after a considerable amount of research, I created Booked Parties – a booking platform for children’s birthday parties catering specifically to children up to the age of 16.

 

Booked Parties launched August 2015 with the goal of streamlining the birthday party planning process.  Instead of having to visit various different websites and forums to get details and feedback, the site provides all information in one place. Not only does this save time for busy parents, it gives them new ideas and exposes them to venues and vendors they wouldn’t have otherwise known about in their towns and in the surrounding areas.

 

Our tag line says it all: Compare, Book, Celebrate— parents can sort through the website’s comprehensive list of venues and vendors in Westchester, NY and Fairfield, CT and book their party or event with a few clicks of a button. Booked Parties allows parents to search by location, budget, venue, vendor, and by ratings and customer reviews. Users of the site can reach out to the events planner at the venue or to the vendor directly through each businesses e-brochure within the site.  Best of all, Booked Parties partners provide a 5% discount to anyone booking their event through the site. And that’s not all! Our blog also provides information on birthday party trends, gift guides, and through featured interviews with local business owners!

 

As we continue to develop the brand, a key focus for Booked Parties is celebrating LOCAL. Summer 2016 marks the launch of Booked Market Place where a variety of local merchants have storefronts on the site to sell birthday gifts and party related items.  Parents and kids will have the ability to create wish lists that can be fulfilled right there on the site!  Booked Parties also supports various local non-profits, including The Birthday Box and Birthday Wishes, as well as Share Your Wish which makes it easy for children to share their birthday gifts with any non-profit of their choice. 

 

In 2016/2017 we also plan to expand Booked Parties into new markets within the tri-state area.”

 

For more information on Booked Parties and our partners, please visit our website at www.bookedparties.com

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Simon Says Give: A kid-founded and kid-operated organization that celebrates kids by providing birthday celebrations for those in need. https://shareyourwish.com/simon-says-give-a-kid-founded-and-kid-operated-organization-that-celebrates-kids-by-providing-birthday-celebrations-for-those-in-need/ Wed, 22 Jul 2015 17:35:55 +0000 https://shareyourwish.com/simon-says-give-a-kid-founded-and-kid-operated-organization-that-celebrates-kids-by-providing-birthday-celebrations-for-those-in-need/ Picture this, Ben walks into a room to be celebrated for his 7th birthday.  There are family and friends all around.  Some of the family drove for hours to be there to celebrate him.  Ben has certainly had other birthday’s – but this one was special.  It was at a location that was decorated and […]

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Picture this, Ben walks into a room to be celebrated for his 7th birthday.  There are family and friends all around.  Some of the family drove for hours to be there to celebrate him.  Ben has certainly had other birthday’s – but this one was special.  It was at a location that was decorated and there was cake and gifts and games and the focus was all on celebrating his special day. This was one of the first “real” birthday parties Ben had ever had.  He was able to have this birthday celebrate – this special day all about him – because Simon Says Give was able to provide that to him. 
 

My name is Mandi Simon, and I am the founder of the nonprofit, Simon Says Give.  At the age of 7, I knew I wanted to make a difference and help other kids, so we started the nonprofit to celebrate kids and their birthdays.  I feel that every kid should have at least a few hours on their birthday that is all about them and I ask for other kids my age to step-up and make a difference.  Donate your birthday to support a kid that has maybe never had a party on their day. 

 
I feel it is heart warming to know that you are helping someone else.  Often kids my age may not think they can make a difference in the lives of others, this is an easy way to do so. I believe the magic of a birthday isn’t actually the presents – just like Christmas isn’t suppose to be about the stuff. Someone’s birthday is suppose to be a celebration of them. If you are a kid and you feel you have enough stuff around your room and house – toys, games etc. and you want someone else to have gifts and the joy of a birthday celebration – I ask you to donate your birthday party to Simon Says Give and we will find a kid that may have never had a birthday party and make it a magical day for them. 
 
Over the past 3 years, we have celebrated over 500 birthday celebrations and we have large goals to celebrate many more.  Join me in that mission! #kidscelebratingkids

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A Look Inside The Busy Lives Of 5 Westchester “Mompreneurs” https://shareyourwish.com/a-look-inside-the-busy-lives-of-5-westchester-mompreneurs/ Thu, 19 Feb 2015 16:47:13 +0000 https://shareyourwish.com/a-look-inside-the-busy-lives-of-5-westchester-mompreneurs/ The Birthday Party Mompreneur Rebecca Schleifer’s entrepreneurial “aha moment” arrived with her oldest daughter’s third birthday. “The party guest list was 32 people long,” recalls the Dobbs Ferry mother of three. “I looked at my playroom and said, ‘How I am going to fit 32 more presents in here?’” Schleifer asked guests to tone down […]

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The Birthday Party Mompreneur

Rebecca Schleifer’s entrepreneurial “aha moment” arrived with her oldest daughter’s third birthday.

“The party guest list was 32 people long,” recalls the Dobbs Ferry mother of three. “I looked at my playroom and said, ‘How I am going to fit 32 more presents in here?’”

Schleifer asked guests to tone down the gifts and bring a baby rattle to be donated to children’s hospitals instead. A garbage bag was stuffed full by the end of the party, inspiring guests’ interest and praise. Soon after, she began brainstorming business possibilities.

The result in 2012: Shareyourwish.com, a birthday party invitation website that helps guests donate to one or more of the child’s chosen charities. A portion of the payment goes to the charity; the rest goes to the child’s gift fund. Children learn about giving and can buy something they really want, while party guests skip the hassle of shopping for a gift. Share Your Wish receives a $2.50 fee for each transaction.

The site hosted about 240 parties during the first eight months of 2014, raising more than $33,000 for charity—both figures roughly double the same period in the prior year.

To start the business and keep it running, the Schleifers raised about $70,000 from friends and family. The largest cost: website design and ongoing maintenance.

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How I Convinced My Kid To Donate Her Gifts To Charity https://shareyourwish.com/how-i-convinced-my-kid-to-donate-her-gifts-to-charity/ Wed, 22 Oct 2014 18:18:49 +0000 https://shareyourwish.com/how-i-convinced-my-kid-to-donate-her-gifts-to-charity/ We’ve covered charity birthday parties in the pages of Parents a lot. Moms seem to always be looking for ways to throw parties for their kids that will benefit others less fortunate whether it be roll-up-your-sleeve events that allow kids to do charity work at the actual shin-dig or ones that allow guests to donate […]

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We’ve covered charity birthday parties in the pages of Parents a lot. Moms seem to always be looking for ways to throw parties for their kids that will benefit others less fortunate whether it be roll-up-your-sleeve events that allow kids to do charity work at the actual shin-dig or ones that allow guests to donate to a cause in lieu of buying gifts. Perhaps it’s the extravagance of the modern kid’s birthday party that gives us this tug to give back — we all know what a first world problem it is to have to choose between the Ice Skating Princess party and the Make Cupcakes At the Local Bakery Party. And the fact that every kid comes home with a dozen new toys that she definitely doesn’t need (or sometimes even want). But trying to suggest that your kid donate those gifts is a hard sell. Last year I suggested that my daughter Madelyn, then 7, ask her friends to donate to a special cause instead of bringing gifts. She understood it was a nice thing to do. But she couldn’t give up the gifts.

So this year I tried a new tactic. Madelyn just got a puppy (see pic) for her birthday from a rescue organization. What if we asked your birthday guests to give a donation to FurBabies where we got Blue? As much as she loved the idea of giving to other puppies like her own, she was still hesitant. So I’d get no gifts? she asked. Well, you’d get gifts from Grannie and Grandpa … Hmm. She couldn’t pull the trigger. Then I learned of a website called Share Your Wish that allows her to do both: Get donations to charity AND get a gift of her own. It’s quite brilliant. I only wish that it allowed you to choose any charity. We couldn’t give to FurBabies but we could give to the ASPCA, the national animal non-profit that helps pets (and lots of other reputable non-profits). The site lets you choose what percentage to give to the charity and how much to go into the kid’s personal gift fund. Madelyn chose 75% to charity and 25% to herself. (The site also handles all the transactions which is handy.) Currently Madelyn has raised $156 for the ASPCA and $52 for herself (which she plans on spending on her puppy; Blue “needs” a sweater). It’s a win-win!

Except for the part that I still couldn’t get 4 out of 15 of the guests’ moms to RSVP. That will continue to be a first world problem that will never be solved.

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Mother’s Day – a great reason to get me out of blog retirement! https://shareyourwish.com/mother-s-day-a-great-reason-to-get-me-out-of-blog-retirement/ Fri, 09 May 2014 15:17:56 +0000 https://shareyourwish.com/mother-s-day-a-great-reason-to-get-me-out-of-blog-retirement/ So Mother’s Day is fast approaching, and I haven’t written a blog in what feels like 100 yrs.  Why?  Because I am too busy being a mom!  And literally, as I type, my 10 month old is laying on me half asleep and pissed as hell because I am nebulizing him.  Multitasking at its best!        […]

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So Mother’s Day is fast approaching, and I haven’t written a blog in what feels like 100 yrs.  Why?  Because I am too busy being a mom!  And literally, as I type, my 10 month old is laying on me half asleep and pissed as hell because I am nebulizing him.  Multitasking at its best!       

I am about to celebrate my sixth Mother’s Day, and as I reflect on being a mommy these words come to mind: love, worry, patience, fear, commitment, adventure, laughter, tears, vomit, mud, hugs, kisses, and dedication!  I think that since becoming a mom I have learned a ton about myself.  I also have a total respect and admiration for my own mom – who is an incredible mother – and I totally didn’t give her the respect she deserved growing up.  Because, holy sh*t, being a mom is the freakin’ hardest job ever – my bosses make me work 24/7, and I have three of them! 

I am in constant worry mode – “Did I say the right thing?  Do my kids feel loved?  Why did I just yell at them (umm, yes, I am not perfect, sometimes I raise my voice)?  Do they know I would do anything for them???”  Aside from just making sure I don’t completely screw them up, I get overwhelmed by the laundry, the fact that I am a really crappy cook, and when dinner rolls around I always have a screaming baby who isn’t quite ready for bed, but is just so over the day!  And I sooo get that, by 5ish I am so ready to cry too.

However, aside from the worry and those moments where I doubt myself, I also am proud of myself!  I have stayed calm in some really scary situations; I let my kids be who they are; I am learning to not be so controlling (ok, my husband may disagree, but whatever!); and most importantly, I teach my children the importance of love, family, and friendship.

So this Mother’s Day take time to applaud yourselves for a job well done, and just for one day try to let the guilt of what you think you are doing wrong go – you can worry the other 364 days 🙂

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Party Central Pick Of The Month: Charitable Parties https://shareyourwish.com/party-central-pick-of-the-month-charitable-parties/ Wed, 04 Sep 2013 14:34:35 +0000 https://shareyourwish.com/party-central-pick-of-the-month-charitable-parties/ Westchester residents Buck and Rebecca Schleifer created Share Your Wish, a way to host a birthday party while doing good for others…

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Westchester residents Buck and Rebecca Schleifer created Share Your Wish, a way to host a birthday party while doing good for others…

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The first day of kindergarten – my hopes for my little girl. https://shareyourwish.com/the-first-day-of-kindergarten-my-hopes-for-my-little-girl/ Tue, 03 Sep 2013 15:08:19 +0000 https://shareyourwish.com/the-first-day-of-kindergarten-my-hopes-for-my-little-girl/ Tomorrow I will put my baby girl on the bus as she begins her journey into kindergarten.  I can’t believe she is beginning elementary school – it feels like yesterday when the doctor announced, “It’s a girl!”  Everyone says with a blink of an eye our children grow up so quickly.  I sound like my […]

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Tomorrow I will put my baby girl on the bus as she begins her journey into kindergarten.  I can’t believe she is beginning elementary school – it feels like yesterday when the doctor announced, “It’s a girl!”  Everyone says with a blink of an eye our children grow up so quickly.  I sound like my mother, but dare I say, she is right.

As a former teacher, of course I value education, but I think we as parents are taking education a bit too far.  The goals and expectations we have for our children are a bit scary.  I have been hearing about school districts since my daughter entered a 2’s class – which districts are highly competitive, which districts are lacking, etc.  It is really stressful and one of my least favorite conversations.  I would be lying if I said I didn’t get sucked into it at times.  We all seem to be in a rush to have our children read, and many brag about their little geniuses.  Ugh!  All of our children are special and smart to us, and that is the way it should be. 

I think school is important.  Of course I want my children to succeed, but what is truly more important to me is that my children feel supported, are confident, build and maintain friendships, and learn valuable life lessons that will make them better people.  And of course finger paint – after all, it’s kindergarten!

When my daughter gets on the bus tomorrow I hope she is smiling from ear to ear and has the best year in kindergarten.  I hope she has a blast learning, but more importantly, I hope everyday she goes to school feeling smart and confident!  I hope she raises her hand with confidence, understands we don’t always have the right answer, and to always respect others.  And I hope I can contain my tears as I put her on the bus! 

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