Aleisha McDaniel is the Resident Appreciation in Daybreak (R.A.D.) Award recipient for April. She and her family moved to Daybreak three years ago because they loved the beauty and uniqueness of the area.

“It just felt right for our family,” she said. “We’ve been really happy here!”

Aleisha has worked hard to give back to the community that she loves. She started the Porch Piñata Project almost five years ago and leaves filled piñatas on the porches of people who could use a little love. So far she has given 164 piñatas away! They have gone to fellow autism families (Aleisha is an autism mama), families who have lost a loved one or a job, military families, families of fallen officers and families who are making a difference in the community.

For April’s Autism Awareness month, Aleisha delivered blue light bulbs (#lightitupblue) to her neighborhood along with information about autism to increase awareness. The area was bright with blue porch lights throughout the streets.

Outside of the community, Aleisha’s service is expansive. Another cause near and dear to her heart is the Angel Mother Project which is in its third year! For Mother’s Day, she approaches companies about donating gift items for women who have lost their moms. People contact her and nominate a woman they know who has lost her mother. These women are then the recipients of the gifts. This year Aleisha is serving close to 40 women.

In addition, Aleisha served on the Utah state board of American Mothers Inc. for a year, advocating for the strengthening of home and family. She also owns a nonprofit called Season’s Readings. This organization gives new books to kids in need during the holidays. Books are collected during book drives and then they are sent to pediatric cancer patients, Title One schools and low-income families.

If that all wasn’t enough, Aleisha completes a service project every year for her birthday. These service projects have included collecting sleepers for babies at Primary Children’s Hospital, holding a summertime canned food drive for a local shelter and taking food to Pioneer Park to feed the homeless there.

When she is not serving the community, Aleisha writes for her own website and for state and national sites. In her spare time she also likes to read, hike, bike, be outside and spend time with family and friends.

“Aleisha is a sassy little ray of sunshine that brings joy wherever she goes. She goes above and beyond to make others feel special and uplifted,” a neighbor said. “Aleisha and her family are delightful people and I’m thankful to have them in my neighborhood! She does so much for others, it would be great to see her be on the receiving end.”

Daybreak is lucky to have such an amazing resident! We thank Aleisha for all of her hard work to make our community a wonderful place to live.

About the LiveDAYBREAK R.A.D. Award
Giving back is one of LiveDAYBREAK's pillars, and we are looking for a Daybreak resident who personifies this value by helping make our community better. We need your help to identify these types of residents, so we can spotlight and reward them with the LiveDAYBREAK Resident Appreciation in Daybreak (R.A.D.) Award. We will choose one nominee every other month for the award and highlight their good deeds on our website.

Visit R.A.D. Award Page