32 Grandparents: Birthday Giveback 2026

I suppose I’m turning 32 this week. Growing up I remember hearing [some] adults in my life say things about how they didn’t give much thought to their birthdays or that “it was just another day.” I never subscribed to that. I love birthdays, especially other peoples. But from a young age, I also remember figuring out we could use our birthdays for good. 

In elementary school, my friend had a birthday party and asked people to bring supplies for the local animal shelter “in lieu of gifts.” I’ve loved the phrase “in lieu of” ever since. I’ve also done the same thing for my birthday ever since. 

A decade ago, I realized I could formalize this idea into a program for The Smile Project. I called it #BirthdayGiveback and the premise was taking a day that is all about us and redirecting it into service of others. 

The implementation of this has varied throughout the years. When I turned 24, I spent 24 straight hours volunteering in and around New York City. It was chaotic and beautiful and also probably the last time I pulled an all-nighter. Last year, I turned 31 during a work trip in Kansas City, Missouri and focused my BirthdayGiveback on my coworkers, creating handwritten cards for each with a Smile Project sticker and a chocolate chip cookie, a little pick-me-up during a busy conference.  

All that is to say, there are endless ways to do a BirthdayGiveback. And it had been on my mind for a while to start planning a good one for this year. But then, as so often does, life happened. 

On Tuesday, May 12, after coming home from the doctors where I’d been told to not run for 4 – 5 weeks, I got the call I’d been waiting for—at the age of 94, my grandmother had passed away.

When you are expecting a thing, you grieve in your expectation. And when the thing happens, well, what is there to say?

I could—and likely will in the coming weeks—write for hours about the influence of my grandma. I was fortunate enough to grow up an hours drive from my grandparents and whether it was piano recitals in elementary school or holidays as an adult, they were, and will always remain, a huge piece of who I am. 

It is with her memory in my head that this year’s #BirthdayGiveback came into focus. I am who I am today because of my grandparents. I bet many of you could say the same. I also know that “grandparent” can be a loose term. 

I now have no living grandparents. But I have endless adopted ones (living and passed) who have taken me in and loved me as their own. I think of the neighbor growing up who taught me that the proper way to feed a horse carrots was to keep your palm flat so they don’t mistake your fingers for a snack. Or the college coach who greeted everyone with a smile and was more interested in the person behind the mile time. Or the group of women I met when I first moved to New York City who still treat me as one of their own, no matter how long has gone since I last saw them.

With this in mind, I feel grateful to introduce the 2026 BirthdayGiveback: Do something nice for our grandparents. 

Interpret this however you’d like. Are your grandparents living? Can you send them a card or give them a call? Do you live close enough to visit? Keep in mind these don’t have to be blood relatives. 

Can you love on someone else’s grandparents? One of the best jobs I ever had was the summer after I turned 20 and worked at an all dementia nursing home. I loved those residents as deeply as I’ve ever loved anyone. On my last day there, I cried more than I’ve cried over select breakups. You don’t have to switch careers for this #BirthdayGiveback, but can you do some research? Call your local nursing home and see if they allow visitors. Can you volunteer with Bingo? Can you bring your guitar and play classic oldies for the residents? Can you just sit and visit?

Or can you take it a different route and thank the people who do this work every day? My grandma lived in a senior living community and as her health declined was able to move within the space for additional care. Throughout this time, I was able to meet incredibly kind and generous humans who cared deeply for my grandma and who loved on my family hard. The gratitude I feel for them is immeasurable. I can think of no better way to spread kindness on this BirthdayGiveback than honoring them. 

So that’s my ask for this year’s BirthdayGiveback. Spread your kindness. Tell us about it or post on it (#BirthdayGiveback and #32Grandparents). We’ll randomly select a couple of you to send “Kindness Heroes: Ordinary People Doing Extraordinary Things,” by our friend Jackie Kurtz. (It’s extra fun since The Smile Project is featured on page 122.)

As always, thank you for taking up the call to kindness. Let’s make this one extra special. For my Rose and for everyone who has ever been loved by a grandma.