Joshua is an energetic member of the wider L’Arche Tahoma Hope community who attends many Welcome Center activities. In 2020, he began a birthday gift practice, delivering personal cards and balloons to many in our community and beyond.
He says it all started with his first Pumpkin Pen Pal, a sort of Halloween “Secret Santa” exchange of decorated pumpkins among community members. The pumpkins are generously donated each year by Sterino Farms in Puyallup.
Because Joshua’s Pumpkin Pen Pal’s birthday also fell in October, Joshua decided that he wanted to send a small gift for his pen pal’s birthday. He enjoyed the act of giving so much that over the years of the pandemic, Joshua expanded to include everyone whose birthdays are listed on the L’Arche annual calendar — and to those involved in the Sound Athletics Team with whom Joshua competes in the Special Olympics. Now Joshua and his caregiver make around ten birthday deliveries per month!
One day when Joshua was making a delivery to the L’Arche office, he was asked how he knew someone’s birthday was coming up because that person had left L’Arche and was no longer listed on the calendar. We were all impressed to hear that Joshua simply remembers everyone’s birthday, once he learns it.
Each person with a birthday receives a handwritten card with personalized sketches from Joshua, along with a small balloon. He carefully chooses even the stamps. This month, he chose elephant stamps, because the post office had run out of birthday stamps.
On occasion, Joshua is saddened whenever snow or extremely cold weather causes trouble with birthday deliveries, but most months he is able to deliver the remembrances directly. In January, Joshua even got to share in Farm Manager Pat’s birthday cake for an extra celebration!
Joshua has found incredible ways to create wider connections through the Welcome Center and Special Olympics because of his generous spirit. Everyone on Joshua’s list is blessed by his efforts!
