By Chiara Sbrizzi – Party4Purpose founder
One of the most common things I heard from parents of young kids during the “pre-seed” phase of Party4Purpose was:
“I love the idea, but there’s no way my child will give up their birthday presents for charity!”
And hey, I get it—I’m a parent too.
When I first explained the P4P concept to my own kids, I got mixed reviews.
My daughter? Fully on board—heart of gold.
My youngest? Pure panic. He stared at me like I’d just cancelled Christmas and whispered, horrified:
“Wait… does this mean I won’t get ANY presents for my birthday?!” 😱
So, I reassured him:
“Don’t worry, you’ll still get awesome presents from family—Mum, Dad, Nonni, Uncle Daniele—but instead of 23 random plastic things from your classmates, you’ll get one amazing, thoughtful gift. Plus, you’ll help the environment AND another kid who actually needs help.”
Still unconvinced, he gave me a side-eye and quietly walked away. I let the idea marinate.
Fast forward to his next birthday: he wanted to invite everyone. About 20 kids (ouch!)
Luckily it was at the park, so no house to clean afterward… well, I still ended up cleaning something, somehow. 🙄
Despite our polite “no gifts, please” message, people brought presents. Lots of them.
We barely squeezed everything into the car. Once home, he dove into the mountain of presents.
Result? Utter disappointment.
Wrong Lego sets. Craft kits (he’s allergic to glitter and scissors). Socks with dinosaurs—he’s into cricket, people!
Cue the tears.
“I wish they hadn’t given me anything… I’d rather they donated that money to charity.”
LIGHTBULB MOMENT. 💡
I didn’t say “I told you so”… but I thought it loudly.
The next day, I packed the car again and dropped half the haul off to Vinnies.
And the kicker? A couple of months later I asked him,
“Hey, do you remember what you got for your birthday?”
He named only the thoughtful gifts from family—the ones I helped coordinate based on what he actually likes.
Not a single mention of the party gifts.
So here’s the thing:
Party4Purpose isn’t about fewer presents or less fun.
It’s about fewer disappointments, less waste, and more meaning.
Our kids still get awesome gifts—just the right ones—and they also get to feel the joy of helping someone else (without giving up cake, of course).