Though the last Leap Day was only in 2020, it feels as though it has been much longer.

Call it the pandemic effect, but it seems more than four years have passed between the last Leap Day and today. One has to imagine what it has felt like for those whose birthdate returns once every four years.

More than a few in the Baylor College of Medicine community were born on Feb. 29. We asked their age in leap years, what date they celebrate their birthday on in non-leap years and fun Leap Day birthday memories. If you recognize one you know, make sure to wish them a happy birthday!

Beth Van Horne, associate professor of pediatrics — public health, is 11-years-old in leap years. When it’s not a leap year, she celebrates on both Feb. 28 and March 1 because “why choose one day?”

“When I turned 2 in second grade, my elementary school did a special celebration,” Van Horne remembered. “I delivered treats to all of the classrooms and got to share the background of how Leap Day came to be. This was featured in the local newspaper.”

Until recently, Van Horne received a birthday card every Feb. 29 from her second grade teacher.

Alisha Lerch works in business operations in the Division of Critical Care Medicine and Pediatrics at Baylor’s West Campus. She will be 14 this year!

When it’s not a leap year, she celebrates on Feb. 28 since it’s the last day of the month. Unofficially, though, Lerch proclaims February as her birth month.

“Interestingly, people tend to make a bigger deal when I don’t have an actual birthday,” Lerch said. “I think they feel bad for me. Unofficially, I celebrate the entire month.”

The most memorable leap year birthday memory was the birth of her goddaughter’s son on Feb. 29, 2020. She calls him her Twinkie.

Shantel Joyner H., senior research administration associate of research resources in the Department of Pediatrics, turns 12 this year. In non-leap years, she celebrates on both Feb. 28 and March 1.

Story and graphic by Julie Garcia