Birthdays are a time for celebration, cake, ice cream and presents! But for one little girl, giving gifts was more important than receiving them.

Meet Sioux Falls donor Eleanor Shatto. This past December, she celebrated her seventh birthday on December 7—making it her golden birthday. Now, for most seven-year-olds, a birthday party means friends, cake, balloons and gifts. This year, instead of keeping her presents, Eleanor decided to have a golden birthday give back party and donate all her toys to an organization of her choice.

The idea started in 2023 when Eleanor’s cheer team organized a toy drive around Christmas. She had the idea to donate some of her birthday presents to the toy drive. After many family conversations about how the Shatto family could help others, Eleanor went to her mom, Sara, and told her she wanted to do something extra special for her golden birthday. Luckily for Sara, she knew how to make Eleanor’s dreams a reality with the idea from a friend who had been hosting birthday give back parties for her children for the past 10 years.

Eleanor was so excited to plan her party and tell her friends what they would be doing, but first, she had to find an organization that accepted toys at Christmas time.

“We called CHS on a whim—hoping they were still accepting donations,” said Eleanor. “We talked about how the kids at CHS may be there unexpectedly this Christmas or may not have a stable situation at home. I thought this would be a great way to bring them comfort. Plus, I think it feels good to be kind to others!”

After choosing CHS, the Shatto family got to work planning the party. They created a birthday invitation with instructions for everyone to bring a new unwrapped toy. A note was also included explaining that all the gifts would be donated to CHS. Several families were inspired by Eleanor’s kindness and brought more than one toy to contribute.

“Being seven is such an exciting time to receive presents. It’s hard to not be selfish and want it all—especially with a December birthday,” said Sara. “There were some cool gifts that I could tell she wanted to keep. But after talking about how she could share her joy, love and excitement with other kids, she knew she was making the right decision.”

Eleanor said that even though it was fun seeing all the toys her friends brought, she “had more fun carrying all of the presents into Children’s Home Society!” 

This is not the first time the Shatto family has done acts of service together. This past Thanksgiving, the five of them delivered turkeys to families in need. Sara said the family has frequent conversations about volunteering. Both she and her husband, Justin, remind their kids that “you don’t need to be a powerful person to make an impact on someone’s life.”

“We often talk about our blessings and ways to bless others,” said Sara. “As a family with three young kids who are just getting to an age where volunteering is more understood, we are excited to contribute more in the future.”

Justin and Sara hope their kids continue to see the value in volunteering and that our actions can inspire other people to do good deeds.

“This has been such a fun way to expose our friends and extended family to the needs of our community," said Sara. "We hope our children continue to see the value in doing birthday give back parties. We want them to live and give with purpose.”

At seven years old, Eleanor already understands the power of giving with a purpose. On Christmas morning, she was so excited that she pulled Sara aside to ask, “Do you think she was surprised?”

“Was who surprised?” asked Sara.

“The little girl who opened the doll with the blue hair!” exclaimed Eleanor.

At that moment, Sara was astonished by Eleanor’s question. It had almost been three weeks since they dropped off the toys at CHS. And here amid the magical Christmas morning excitement, Eleanor was thinking about whoever received one of her special gifts.

“I’m sure she loved it,” Sara told Eleanor.

The Shatto family plans to continue birthday give back parties in the future and hopes Eleanor’s actions inspire other kids—and adults—to get involved in their communities. We can all take a lesson from Eleanor and remember to help others and always be kind.