THANK YOU to all our wonderful sponsors and volunteers who helped make our third-quarter Foster Kids’ Birthday Event a huge success!
First launched in Fall 2019, our Foster Kids’ Birthday Program was created to give teenagers in foster care something every young person deserves: a birthday celebration that’s uniquely their own.
For many of us, birthdays mean cake, presents, and time spent with people who care about us. But for some teenagers in foster care, those simple celebrations have never been part of their lives. When JFCS learned that many young people in foster care in Northeast Florida had never experienced a birthday celebration, we knew we wanted to change that.
“I think it’s important that we’re letting our kids know we’re thankful they’re alive and they’re here and that they’re worth celebrating.”
— Colleen Rodriguez, CEO, JFCS
Though the program experienced interruptions over the years, including the COVID-19 pandemic, its purpose never changed. Now, in 2026, we’ve brought that tradition back with quarterly celebrations, starting with the recent event. With pizza, yummy snacks, personalized birthday cakes, and fun activities including an AWESOME game truck from our friends at Game Time Jax, we helped these teens create joyful memories, foster meaningful connections, and know that they are seen, they are appreciated, and that each of their lives matter.
A huge thank you to our wonderful volunteers: Emily Bellock, Cecilia Cristol, Holly Emas, Robin Lanigan, Bethany Leonard, Rachel Sandler, Ilene Schinasi, Fran Selevan, Debra Setzer and Cathy Stupski for generously providing gifts and birthday cakes and helping make each teen feel special and celebrated.