Paul A. Hebert/Invision/APWhile it may not be one of those milestone-round numbers, this is conceivably the most momentous birthday of Caitlyn Jenner's life.
The athlete and actor turned motivational speaker and transgender icon turns 66 today; though you could say, in fact, that Oct. 28, 2015, is also Caitlyn Jenner's first birthday.
This has been the most unbelievably important year for the I Am Cait star, who, in an interview with Diane Sawyer that aired in April, opened up about her decision to fully embrace living as the woman she always felt herself to be.
When the interview aired, she was still publicly Bruce Jenner, 1976 Olympic gold medalist in the decathlon, ex-husband of Kris Jenner, Linda Thompson and Chrystie Crownover and father of six, plus four stepchildren.
But while she certainly remains a doting parent, with daughters Kendall and Kylie Jenner acknowledging that Caitlyn's just still Dad to them, everything changed on April 24 when the international celebrity known for 65-plus years as Bruce confirmed that "for all intents and purposes" he was a woman.
In that instant she not only cleared the air for herself, but also sent the conversation about what it means to be transgender rocketing from the relative mainstream to the only thing people were talking about.
It was a conversation in desperate need of a wider platform and a bigger spotlight—and it got both.
Lady Gaga, Miley Cyrus, Laverne Cox, Jimmy Fallon, Sam Smith, Ellen DeGeneres, Rosie O'Donnell and Oprah Winfrey represent just a handful of the famous names who tweeted their support.
Then about five weeks later, on June 1, the world met Caitlyn Jenner for the first time, via the cover of Vanity Fair.
She became a global sensation, in some ways surpassing—especially in this age of Twitter, Instagram and every other way in which her cover went viral in seconds—the height of fame enjoyed by Bruce decades ago.
This past summer has been all about Caitlyn's style (she made one of Vogue's best-dressed women of the week list in July), her personal journey and her still-ongoing mission to educate our society about gender identity and the importance of acceptance and compassion for all.
Caitlyn has admitted that, considering her financial success and fiercely supportive family, she has it pretty damn good compared to so many others who have taken that step to openly embrace their true selves as transgender men or women.
But the I Am Cait star is determined to help make life better for the entire trans community and Caitlyn's public emergence was only the first step—albeit a powerful one—on the road to making people's differences a non-issue.
"It helps educate everyone about the fact that transgender people are just like everyone else," Nick Adams, Director of Programs, Transgender Media, for GLAAD told E! News this past spring about the importance of transgender celebrities using their fame to raise awareness about trans issues. "We can be your coworkers, we can be your friends, we can be your neighbors. I look forward to the day when people say, 'I'm transgender,' and people go, 'So? What else is interesting about you?'"
Courage was also a resounding theme this summer, and Caitlyn's first public event was an appearance at the 2015 ESPYs in July to accept the Arthur Ashe Courage Award. Some called it a ratings ploy on ESPN's part, but the criticism rang hollow.
Frankly, no matter what you think of her famous family or the fact that she has chosen to tell part of her story on TV, Caitlyn Jenner had done something unprecedented in the world of sports and celebrity. Her moment in the sun, after a lifetime spent suppressing who she was, has been a moment for the ages.
A very happy birthday this year to Caitlyn, the first of many that will prove to the world that it's never too late to start living life to the fullest.
New episodes of I Am Cait will premiere on E! in 2016.