Homeless veterans but defense contractor paid $10 million for bat mitzvah

$10,000 for child's birthday party?Story Highlights
Some parents pay $25,000 for children's birthday parties

Dad reportedly spent $25 million on daughter's bat mitzvah

Minnesota parents organize for simplier birthday celebrations

Frugal mom offers tips on throwing parties for $50
By Anna Jane Grossman

(LifeWire) -- Two years ago, Stephanie Kaster of Manhattan set out to plan the birthday party of a lifetime for her daughter. Granted, little Sophie didn't have many parties under her belt with which to compare it: She was not yet 3.


1 of 2 "I just thought, 'If I go to another paint-a-ceramic-bowl or stuff-a-bear party, I'll shoot myself,'" says Kaster.

So she booked a fondue restaurant, hired a musical troupe to perform as the Wiggles (her daughter's favorite group) and ordered a four-layer cake. Each guest took home a Fisher-Price guitar and custom CD.

The price tag? $5,000.

"I couldn't believe that I'd ended up spending that much," Kaster says.

Some birthday parties now rival weddings in scale and price -- with some costing tens of thousands of dollars. Maybe it's the ever-growing number of millionaires; maybe it's the conspicuous consumption celebrated on reality shows like MTV's "My Super Sweet 16." Whatever the reason, it's keeping Corinne Dinsfriend in business.

She owns Over the Top Productions in Orange County, California, a full-service children's birthday-party planning company. "We really promote a healthy balance of living year round," Dinsfriend says, "but it's OK to indulge your child once a year, because it's about making a memory." Tell us about your parties


Each Over the Top party has a theme and is run by a team trained in child development, says Dinsfriend. Her events -- from tea parties with fine china to military-themed parties led by former Marines -- usually take six weeks to plan and cost as much as $10,000.

That's small potatoes compared with some celebrations. FAO Schwarz, the New York City toy retailer, rents out its store several nights a week for parties. The base cost is $25,000.

Even more extreme is the $10 million that former defense contractor David H. Brooks of Long Island reportedly spent in 2005 on his daughter's bat mitzvah. That soiree, at the storied Rainbow Room in Rockefeller Center, featured 50 Cent, Don Henley and Aerosmith, among others.
go here for more if you really want to
http://www.cnn.com/2008/LIVING/04/18/lw.pricey.bday.parties/index.html

I thought I was going to be sick thinking about what is wrong with this country when we have kids going to bed hungry and sleeping in shelters but at the same time these "parents" can shell out $5,000 for a 3 year olds party because her Mother didn't want to be bored. I'm sure this woman doesn't see anything wrong in what she's doing and that's the problem. It's one of the biggest reasons there is something seriously wrong with this country. The number of billionaires in this country went up so high so fast that now millionaires are all over the place and middle class is thought of as making $200,000 a year. Like to see that in a disabled veterans bank account.

Just when I thought this report couldn't be more pathetic, it jumped the fence on the report a defense contractor shelled out $10 million dollars on a kid's Bat Mitzvah. A defense contractor? What kind of money are they making now while there are two occupations and so many getting killed and wounded? Do you think any of these people, especially the contractor who could afford to do that for a party, could maybe kick in a couple of million to take care of some wounded veterans or even a veterans homeless shelter? Think of it. He makes money off of war, and they loose money off of the wounds they receive from war. This is what's wrong with this country!