On the day Nolan Feeney turned 17, he was expecting a message.

He was supposed to watch the scoreboard during the fifth inning of the Chicago Cubs-Cincinnati Reds game at Wrigley Field.

On time, the board flashed: "Happy Birthday, Nolan. Love, Mom and Dad."

“I thought it was really funny – there was my name on the big screen of the stadium,” he said.

Feeney’s parents had worried that he wouldn't have any friends to celebrate his birthday with during the five-week journalism program at the National High School Institute.

But the Berkeley, Calif., cherub was not lonely on his birthday. After the celebration at Wrigley Field, Feeney's friends took him out to eat, and there was cake and a birthday party later. His family and new friends had made sure his big day was recognized.

Not all cherubs had grand birthday gestures like the one Feeney's parents planned for him. And even though many cherubs were worried how a birthday away from home would be, new friends helped make celebrations unique and happy.

Community associates plan parties, complete with cake and singing, for cherubs who have birthdays that fall during the program. But some cherubs went above and beyond to make their classmates feel comfortable.

Shaina Coogan, of Cooper City, Fla,. was nervous about celebrating her birthday at cherubs. She had never been away from her family on her birthday. But Coogan’s worries disappeared the morning of her 17th birthday when she awoke to 10 friends singing to her, even though she had just met them a few days earlier.

“I can’t say having my birthday here was better or worse than having it at home,” Coogan said. “But it was a really good experience.”

Alberto Sandoval’s 17th birthday fell near the end of the program, when he had already made some close friends.

“I usually have every birthday with family so I wasn’t used to this, but it turned out that I got to spend my birthday with people I like,” Sandoval, of Fresno, Calif., said. His friends presented him with two books and a hat.

But for some cherubs, there were more important things than presents. Feeney was just glad he wasn’t writing articles on his birthday.