Eco-Birthdays by Jim Parks on Creators.com

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Eco-Birthdays

Eco-aware parents who have thrown birthday parties for their kids and become chagrined at the amount of waste and conspicuous consumption may want to take note: an organization called ECHOage (www.echoage.com) makes planning "charity-focused, eco-friendly celebrations" a simple operation.

Guests are invited to make an online donation, and then the money is pooled — with half going to the charity the birthday child has chosen, while the other half allows the child to choose a special gift. The advantages are that waste is decreased and children are given the power to benefit important charities.

Two mothers, Alison Smith and Debbie Zinman, founded the organization after growing weary of the trash bags of waste and the pile of toys that were quickly forgotten.

ECHOage tracks the results by reporting how many meals were served to underprivileged families, how many families received clean water, etc. Lives are being changed one birthday party at a time.

Questions can be sent to Jim Parks at jrparks@mac.com. To find out more about Jim Parks and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.