Birthday Celebration Ideas for Senior Adult Groups

Written by Larry Mizell

There may have been a time when birthdays were not that important to you, but as you age, birthdays seem to become milestones to be celebrated more than memorials of days gone by. Celebrate special days with senior adults by making birthdays occasions of joy and celebration.

Celebrating individually and with friends is the norm for most people, but many senior adult groups and classes also share in a joint celebration activity. Such times can be reminders of good times in life while celebrating special occasions with people who mean a lot to them. Whether monthly, quarterly, or some other approach, celebrate birthdays.

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This event can be a breakfast, lunch, or dinner, but should be planned at a time when most people feel comfortable attending. Provide a meal or appropriate food as well as time for fellowship and fun. Use appropriate decorations and themes. A list of possible monthly themes follows at the end of this article. Some planning tips include:

• Appoint a person or group responsible for the events. Make sure someone coordinates these celebrations. If your church has a senior adult ministry, this group probably has a leadership team with this responsibility.
• Group birthdays by month or season. Choose an approach for a year and then evaluate at the end of the year whether to continue that approach. You could start with quarterly events, then move to monthly if appropriate.
• Decorate with appropriate event or seasonal themes. Quarterly events easily could have holiday themes, such as Independence Day or Christmas, or could be based on the seasons themselves, such as beach parties in the summer. Monthly themes could follow specific holidays such as Valentine’s Day or Father’s Day. You can get additional tips for planning by downloading the Planning Chart for Birthday Celebrations document by clicking on the title here: Planning Chart for Birthday Celebrations. You also can download a Project Planning Sheet by clicking on the title here: Project Planning Sheet.

You can add musical or other themes to change the emphasis each year as well. The key is to plan events around themes that seniors can have fun with in planning and celebrating.

And no birthday celebration would be complete without the traditional singing of “Happy Birthday” to all who are celebrating this special time in their lives. If the group is small, consider singing to each person individually. If the group is large, sing to everyone at once.

A quick list of planning ideas includes:

• January             New Year
• February            Valentine’s Day
• March                St. Patrick’s Day
• April                  Spring Showers
• May                   Mother’s Day
• June                  Picnic Time
• July                   Independence Day
• August               Summer Vacations
• September         School Days, School Days
• October              Harvest or Halloween
• November          Thanksgiving
• December          Christmas

Larry Mizell is events coordinator for senior adults, LifeWay Church Resources, Nashville, TN.