A touching promposal from a Michigan teen to her friend with special needs has gone viral, reminding everyone that authentic love has many facets – and all are equally beautiful.
The Detroit Free Press (DFP) is reporting on the story of Vee Nguyen of Everett High School in Lansing, Michigan who made a special event out of asking her friend Ben Davis to the prom.
Davis, 16, suffers from PKAN (Pantothenate Kinase-Associated Neurodegeneration) and is restricted to a wheelchair. This nervous system disorder is caused by excessive iron accumulation in certain areas in the brain which results in difficulty in movement beginning in childhood. The disease rapidly progresses and can cause involuntary muscle spasms, rigidity, speech and vision problems.
But that has never stopped Nguyen from calling Davis a friend. According to the DFP, she first met him in 2014 during his freshman orientation when she volunteered to help support special-needs students.
“I started talking to Ben and seeing him every day,” Nguyen told the newspaper. “I would eat lunch with him, and we would have short conversations since it’s hard for him to speak.”
With prom season approaching, and students beginning to pair up for the big dance, Nguyen decided she wanted to ask Davis. But instead of just asking him, she arranged to do so after a pep rally when the whole school was present in the gym.
“I thought doing it at the pep rally where there are a lot of students would be a great idea to spread the message and to let others know that no one should be treated any different,” Nguyen told the DFP in an email.
As he is wheeled out onto the gym floor, a few students come up with a decorated box that reads: “I’ll ask you to the prom when pigs fly!”
The announcer reads the words just as a student cuts open the box, releasing several pink pig-shaped balloons. The crowd lets out a roar of delight as Davis gapes at the sight. His wheelchair is turned around and he sees a group of students lined up with the letters “PROM ?” spelled out on their shirts. At the end of line stands Nguyen with a big gold heart on her shirt.
Davis breaks into a broad smile as she comes forward and officially asks him to the prom.
Of course he said yes!
The video has since gone viral with Nguyen’s Facebook page flooded with positive comments.
But her hope wasn’t to gain a moment of fame. It was to allow this very public promposal tol send a powerful message way beyond her high school.
“Appearance will eventually get old, but personality is what [makes] a person beautiful,” Nguyen said. “And if everyone could look past the physical appearance every time they meet someone, this world would be a better place.”
