Playing Call of Duty, watching videos on YouTube, checking your fantasy sports team’s status, and stalking people you don’t know on Facebook. While most high school students spend their free time engaging in more archetypal afterschool activities, Adrienne Wong (12) spends several hours a week preparing handmade presents for students’ birthdays.
Adrienne got her inspiration from a program that passed out Hershey’s Kisses on Valentine’s Day. Rather than duplicating a service from the past, Adrienne evaluated what may be missing in students’ lives and decided that birthdays were the best time to recognize students and their birthdays by giving them Starburst and a birthday card.
“Birthdays are more personal because everyone has one, but some people’s birthdays just kind of pass by. So I thought it would be nice if everyone could be acknowledged on their birthday,” Adrienne said.
Her work pays off, as many students recognize and appreciate her efforts.
“I thought it was really nice of her. It made me feel like she cared that it was my birthday,” Rishi Ravuri (11) said.
As for her choice of gift, Starburst is well accepted by the school community.
“I really like candy. It’s a nice little gift,” Jacob Chappell (11) said.
Adrienne chose her senior year to begin distributing tokens of her thoughtfulness, but she soon realized that she would need the support of the people around her to complete her project.
“I had a lot of help from my friends, from my parents, and from my sister. [My parents] thought it was weird at first, but they definitely did help me,” she said.
Because these gifts are anonymous, Adrienne focuses on simply making the person feel “acknowledged.” However, she is unsure who is going to carry on her project so people can keep receiving gifts on their birthdays.
“I’ve had some people come up to me and say thank you. I am not expecting people to come up to me and thank me for it,” she said. “That’s why it was supposed to be anonymous, but it’s still nice to know that people appreciate it.”