Today my sixteen-year-old son came home and said that something “really cool” had happened at school. One of his fellow classmates, who happens to have Down Syndrome, got to watch himself sing the national anthem at an assembly in front of the entire student body. Brigham Larkin, a seventeen-year-old, had been dreaming about that moment for quite some time. A very patriotic young man, he had spent two years learning the lyrics and melody and then worked hard at putting them together in order to perform the song. Last Friday he finally got his moment in the spotlight. All spiffed up in a suit and tie, he did our Star Spangled Banner proud. Afterwards, fellow students rushed up on the stage to hug him. They carried him triumphantly into the crowd.
The event made the local news, and you can view it by clicking here. My son told me that Brigham and the other students in class watched the clip on their teacher’s laptop today. When Brigham saw himself performing he began to cry. Earlier he had announced to the class that “I was a star.”
As my son related the story to me, he was clearly moved. I saw emotion overcome his face. I thought to myself how grateful I am that Brigham Larkin attends school with his same-age peers, and that he is mainstreamed rather than excluded. A whole lot of teenagers were inspired, and continue to be inspired, by the determination of this young man. “He goes around to classes every day and sings,” my son told me. Brigham also performs at malls and city council meetings.
We live in an age where some teenagers use random violence against each other, and high schools have even become dangerous, threatening places. So it’s a wonderful thing to see teenagers demonstrating tenderness and compassion. It’s great to see them emphatically supporting special needs kids who are working to reach their goals.
Brigham’s next big aspiration is to be President of the United States. He is a big Bush fan, and collects political souvenirs. A lofty notion, you say? Not according to everyone at his school. The student body now enthusiastically calls him, “President Larkin.”
Kristyn Crow is the author of this blog. Visit her website by clicking here. Some links on this blog may have been generated by outside sources are not necessarily endorsed by Kristyn Crow.
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“His Life is Definitely Not a Struggle.” A Mother of a Child with Down Syndrome Shares Her Story
“Will You Marry Me?” A Special Kind of Love
Mainstreaming: The Special Needs Child Goes to School