Winnie Cooper is 50! Well, her real-life counterpart, Danica McKellar, is, and she entered this new decade in style. The Wonder Years star sparkled at her birthday bash, which was attended by dozens of her celebrity friends, including one of her former costars.
McKellar and Jason Hervey, who played Kevin’s older brother Wayne on The Wonder Years, posed together for a photo at her party. Other celebrity guests on McKellar’s list included Full House’s Candace Cameron Bure and Sabrina Teenage Witch’s Melissa Joan Hart, among others.
Rather than feeling apprehensive about outdated ideas of aging, McKellar is excited to enter her 50s. In fact, she is enjoying the start of the new decade. To celebrate, the Great American Family actress rang in her birthday with some sparkly, star-studded fun.
McKellar’s 50th birthday was a sparkling success
The official theme for McKellar’s bash, which took place on Saturday, January 25 in Nashville, was “salsa-disco.” Guests were encouraged to wear sequins and sparkles, and they certainly understood the assignment.
McKellar dazzled in two sparkly numbers — a sequined mini dress and a sparkly dress to dance in. The actress’s husband, Scott Sveslosky, matched with his wife, rocking a disco-patterned shirt beneath a black blazer, along with a slightly bedazzled cowboy hat. Other guests, including Cameron Bure and Joan Hart, followed suit.
No gifts for McKellar
Instead of receiving the usual gift or present from her guests, The Wonder Years star had another request from the attendees. McKellar asked that her friends and guests join her in donating to Thistle Farms, a non-profit organization that supports and empowers female survivors of human trafficking. Thistle Farms provides free housing, healthcare, counseling and job readiness training for two years to those in need.
Thistle Farms’ mission reads, “Thistle Farms is a nonprofit social enterprise dedicated to helping women survivors recover and heal from prostitution, trafficking, and addiction. We do this by providing a safe place to live, a meaningful job, and a lifelong sisterhood of support.”
McKellar’s star-studded guest list
The actress was surrounded by friends and family, but her guest list also included quite a few celebrity friends who were ready to help McKellar celebrate. Along with Cameron Bure and Joan Hart and Hervey, she was joined by One Tree Hill’s Bethany Joy Lenz, McKellar was joined by Hallmark’s Erin Cahill, actress Riley Weston and actor Jesse Hutch.
The star took the dance floor
McKellar also showed off her skills on the dance floor, performing a choreographed number with her ballroom dance instructor, Michael. The actress discovered her love for dancing after competing on Dancing With the Stars back in 2014 alongside pro dancer Val Chmerkovskiy.
“Dancing truly lights up my soul and gives me a powerful motivation to stay in shape,” McKellar said. “I really think it keeps me young in mind, body and spirit.”
The night was full of fun, sparkles and a whole lot of nostalgia. “I don’t feel 50, whatever that means,” McKellar shared. “Or maybe I do feel 50, and it’s just better than I thought!”