Drive-by birthday party

Birthday parties may be banned, but that did not stop the Harvey community from rallying around a 12-year-old girl on her birthday.

Forget pinatas, pass-the-parcel and pin-the-tail on the donkey, “birthday drive-bys” are the trending new way to celebrate a birthday.

The drive-bys rose to popularity after the Federal Government put bans in place to prevent social gatherings to stop the spread of the coronavirus.

The new notion involves a group of people decorating their cars with balloons and signs and driving past the house of the lucky birthday celebrant.

Heidi Fryer may just have had Harvey’s first drive-by birthday. She turned 12 on March 31 and was surprised and “embarrassed” when a convoy of cars came tooting down her street.

“I didn’t know about the plan and it caught me by surprise,” Heidi said.

Heidi could not have a party so her friends and family brought a party to her — safely, from the comfort of their cars.

Heidi said she still had a great day despite all the coronavirus measures.

“You can still make it work with the people who live in your house,” she said.

“I had chocolate cake which is my favourite.”

She said video calling was a great way to keep in touch with family and friends during strict no gathering rules.

Heidi said she would like to thank everyone who participated in the drive-by and made her day special.

She said her brother, Deegan, who has his birthday next month, might get a drive-by celebration too, if the social gathering bans are not lifted by then.