Welcome
About Lori Kae Co.
Founder of Hello Gift Givers
Curator of Care. Believer in the Beautifully Messy Life.
If you’ve landed here, you probably share something I hold close: the belief that a great gift isn’t just about things — it’s about connection.
I’m Lori Vanderheyden, the heart behind Hello Gift Givers — a place born from both joy and heartbreak, built on the truth that gifts can heal, comfort, and celebrate the full range of our human experience.
I’ve spent 14 years as a special education teacher and am now a marriage and family therapist intern. I’m also a widow of ten years, a mom of five, and the proud owner of what I lovingly call “widow brain,” “ADHD brain,” “momma brain,” and “teacher brain.” (Let’s just say, if there’s ever a thought worth chasing, one of my brains will get there eventually!)
When my husband died, people wanted to help—but they didn’t know how. The question I got over and over was:
“What should I give someone who’s grieving?”
“What really helped you?”
“What did you need most?”
And I realized, I had become an expert in one of life’s hardest subjects: how to give when nothing seems like enough.
There were gifts that brought my family real comfort—blankets that felt like hugs, meals gifted at just the right time, handwritten notes that reminded us we were still seen. Some gifts made us smile, some made us cry, some guided us gently toward healing. My community of love wrapped around us, and little by little, we began to feel safe again.
That experience changed me. It showed me that giving—when done thoughtfully—is a sacred act of empathy. And it sparked the idea for Hello Gift Givers.
A Place for Every Gift, Every Season
Hello Gift Givers is where practical meets personal, and thoughtfulness meets real life.
Here, you’ll find curated gift guides for all occasions—from joyful celebrations like birthdays, weddings, and holidays to harder moments like grief, caregiving, or supporting someone with neurodivergence, amputation, or illness. Life brings both laughter and loss, and we deserve gifts that meet us in every part of that journey.
I like to call it the fun-to-functional gift hub — a community built for the gift givers with heart. Whether you’re shopping for a friend who needs to laugh again, a family navigating the loss of a loved one, or a child who experiences the world differently, we’ll help you find something that says:
I see you. I remember you. You matter to me.
Because sometimes the smallest gift—a candle, a coloring page, a cozy throw—becomes the most profound kind of love letter.
Why This Matters
My background in education and therapy taught me how humans grow; widowhood taught me how we hold each other up. This site is where those worlds meet.
Hello Gift Givers isn’t just about shopping. It’s about thoughtful giving with purpose. Every guide, resource, and idea here is built with intention—to help you give in a way that comforts, strengthens, or celebrates someone when it matters most.
And while you’ll find beautiful products here, my true hope is that you find something bigger:
Peace. Understanding. And maybe a smile on a hard day.
My Promise
To help you give with love, empathy, and joy.
To honor the messy and the magical.
To make gift-giving feel easy, meaningful, and—when needed—healing.
Because giving isn’t just an art. It’s a way of saying to someone, “I haven’t forgotten you.”
From my heart to yours, welcome to Hello Gift Givers — a place that celebrates love in all its forms: the loud, the quiet, the lost, and the found.