Mental Health Awareness Month: Honoring the Strength of Our Families
May Is National Mental Health Awareness Month! This month, we pause to shed light on the emotional strength and resilience of the families we serve.
Imagine waking up every morning with no place to truly call home. You’re a parent navigating the overwhelming stress of finding financial stability, securing your child’s basic needs, and trying—every single day—to keep it all together. Now imagine doing all of this while trying to protect your children from the weight of it all.
The younger ones may not grasp the full magnitude of your situation. You’re doing your best to keep them smiling, healthy, and feeling loved. But the older children? They understand. They sense the frustration. They see the differences between their lives and those of their peers. They know they don’t have a home of their own. And that reality weighs heavily on their minds.
This is the mental toll of homelessness.
It’s not just about shelter—it’s about identity, safety, stability, and connection.
While Extraordinary Birthdays cannot eradicate homelessness, we can create something powerful: moments of joy. Moments that allow families to escape the stress of their circumstances, even if just for a day. Moments where children feel loved, celebrated, and seen.
Some children will remember a shelter as the place they had the best birthday party of their lives. A place where…
- A cake was baked just for them.
- Gifts arrived from their very own wishlist—no idea they were once out of reach.
- Decorations reflected who they are—their favorite colors, characters, and dreams.
- Parents participated and connected, building confidence and lasting memories.
These are the experiences that can boost a parent and their child’s mental and emotional well-being. These are the wins that matter. And that’s why we do what we do.
This May, during National Mental Health Awareness Month, we acknowledge the mental toll homelessness takes on families. But we also rejoice in the joy we help bring. We celebrate the power of compassion, creativity, and community to make a real difference.
Learn more about our mission and impact at extraordinarybirthdays.org and donate to our cause should you feel moved to.