ELGIN, IL — In an age of social distancing, a child's birthday party takes on a host of problems far beyond picking out a cake and a party theme. For Jennifer Schneff Williamson of Elgin, she knew she'd have to cancel her daughter's in-person birthday party with family and neighbors, which had been scheduled for Friday.

She couldn't have Olivia's grandparents and others at the planned gathering at her house considering fears over the spread of the new coronavirus. At first, she said, her daughter didn't seem too bothered by it. But the night before the party, she asked if her aunt was coming over on her birthday. Don't miss local and statewide news about coronavirus developments and precautions. Sign up for Patch alerts and daily newsletters.

As Jennifer told her daughter about "these germs that are out there right now" and why they couldn't come over, Olivia got very sad. So that night, Jennifer decided to post to the Providence, Remington, Copper Springs, Shadow Hills, Elgin, Il - What's Up Facebook page asking neighbors to drive by their house on Friday to wish her daughter a happy birthday.

She also sent the message out to her one son's baseball team and her other son's football team. "And I just thought, 'let's see what happens,'" Jennifer said.