How You Can Celebrate Big Occasions During Social Distancing

With graduation ceremonies, birthday parties, and weddings postponed across the country, many people are left feeling disheartened. If this pandemic has taught us anything, it’s that life carries on in interesting ways. Whether you were really looking forward to celebrating your grandpa's 90th birthday or your niece just had a baby, here are a few ways you can still celebrate with the people you love and care about while practicing social distancing.

Throw a virtual party

With video conferencing platforms likeZoom, Skype, andGoogle Hangouts, you can invite up to a certain number of virtual attendees to your celebration. Here is a quick overview of the perks of each service.

Zoom

The free version of Zoom allows up to 100 attendees, an unlimited number of meetings, and up to 30 mins per meeting. 

Skype

This free service allows you to have up to 50 people in a group chat. You can invite whoever you want to join in, even if they don’t have a Skype account.

Google Hangouts

Google Hangouts video calls can accommodate up to 25 people at one time. You can invite people to the call with a link or by searching for their email address or name inside Google Hangouts.

So, invite your co-workers to a virtual happy hour onFridays or tell your child that there will be a 6th birthday party for him and live stream your son blowing out his birthday candles while family members sing happy birthday from their homes. 

Recreate the celebration in your home

If your teenager is sad that she won’t be able to go to prom this year, throw a prom in your living room. Get the whole family dressed up in their finest threads and decorate your home with streamers and balloons. Create the perfect playlist and make a big bowl of punch and celebrate her junior prom with each other.

Send a virtual gift

You can still send a unique and personalized gift to those who are about to graduate or have a baby. From any room in your house you can text a gift to their favorite coffee shop, bar, restaurant, or shop in seconds with GiftYa. Depending on the merchant, they might not be able to use it right away, but you don’t have to worry about the gift getting lost. 

When the recipient is notified of their gift, they connect it to their Visa or Mastercard. This way, when it’s time to redeem that gift towards that delicious latte or handbag they love, all they have to do is use the payment card they connected it to. They’ll receive a credit on their statement reflecting the amount you purchased for that retailer. It’s a great way to support businesses now and celebrate their special day or achievement.

Order their favorite food and have it delivered

More often than not, big occasions call for delicious foods to be shared by all. If your co-worker is about to celebrate her retirement, and she habitually went to that bakery everyWednesday for lunch, have her favorite menu items delivered to her door.Surprise her before the virtual retirement party on Friday with a bowl of broccoli cheddar soup and that chicken salad she loves.

Since most restaurants are open for takeout or delivery you can order online and have it delivered from the restaurant itself or through a food delivery service like Grubhub or Uber Eats.

In short, you can still find ways to celebrate, send a gift, and enjoy each other’s company during this time.While it’s tough not seeing friends, family, and colleagues face to face, you can still let them know you are thinking of them and that you’re still here to support and honor their accomplishments.