Even my 5- and 8-year-olds were enthralled by the Eighth Annual Birdhouse Stroll Thursday night, and that should tell you something.

I think when I first mentioned the word "birdhouse," they pictured a few brown, wood, boxy contraptions with a little post out front for an avian visitor. They were unprepared to be wowed by the incredible display of creativity and whimsy that is the Birdhouse Stroll, which precedes the upcoming auction that raises money for the Project Return home for teenage girls who have nowhere else to live.

Full disclosure – I've been on the birdhouse auction committee for the past two years, and it's been nothing but an inspiring experience. Last year, I was blown away by the generosity that poured forth from the partygoers at the event, even in the midst of what was for most people a very difficult financial year. One of the girls who lived in the house stood up and spoke about what Project Return had meant to her — how it had, in many ways, saved her life. There was barely a dry eye in the room when she finished, and afterwards, people were raising their auction paddle to donate $1,000 here, $5,000 there. It was a beautiful thing to witness.

But last week's Stroll was all about the artists, all 157 of them. Artists all over Connecticut as well as Nebraska, Florida and Arizona offered up pieces of their work. As we walked up and down Main Street, peering in the windows at this extraordinary array of art, I was struck that for each of these artists, their donation was a gift of time, energy and love.

Baxter Urist built a gorgeous, over-sized sailboat, complete with canvas sails, tiny ropes, cleats on the deck, and working lights that ran around the perimeter. At the helm was a small red robin, sailing off into the sunset, I like to think. The imagery was as stunning as was the evidence of the incredible amount of time and effort that must have gone into this. 

Another was the "Up" house, made by three Rhode Island School of Design students. It was a replica of the cartoon house in the animated movie which hung in a store window from fishing line and a cluster of hand-blown glass balloons. One artist's proud parents were there, and spoke of the 40 hours that had gone into the project. That's an entire week of work, donated to this charity.

Artist Dick Reilly, who built an authentic replica of an 1885 sod house, happened to be in our tour group and told us about his inspiration. "The first thing the settlers had to do on the Great Plains was survive," said Reilly. "If they could do that, the next thing that happened was: they prospered. It's the same with the girls at Project Return."

In past years, Helene Dworski has built several birdhouses covered in thousands of minuscule seed beads, each one of which she placed by hand with a toothpick over the course of about 90 hours. Together, the beads form images of birds taking flight. They're genius.

Most of the birdhouse creators, I have to assume, have never known a girl who's lived at the Project Return house. And they probably never will. But they give anyway.

I could go on and on, 154 more times. Each birdhouse is different, each inspiring in its own way. Not only did the artists impress, but the generosity of the businesses did, too. This was the first year that a few of the chains participated in displaying birdhouses in their front windows. J. Crew, Coach and Pottery Barn joined the fray – a meaningful show of support for Project Return and our community.

Going one step further were the four stores that hosted the strollers at various points along the walk. Brooks Brothers Men and Women, Tiffany's and TD Bank all welcomed the boisterous crowd, offering us wine, filet of beef on toast, coffee and brownies — on their dime. It was a display of Westport's graciousness and generosity at its finest. Being a part of something pure and open-handed is an incomparable rush.

Thank you to all of the businesses that supported the Birdhouse Stroll and to everyone who attended. If you'd like to experience an even bigger rush, attend the Birdhouse Auction on Friday, March 19 at the The Rolling Hills Country Club in Wilton.

I promise you'll get more than you give.

www.projectreturnct.org