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‘He's no different than the rest of us’: Teen asks classmate with Down syndrome to homecoming dance
A Maryland high school student asked a classmate with Down syndrome to be her homecoming date in a viral Facebook video. He said "yes." (Image source: YouTube screenshot)

‘He's no different than the rest of us’: Teen asks classmate with Down syndrome to homecoming dance

A Maryland high school student asked a classmate with Down syndrome to be her homecoming date in a viral Facebook video.

The video

According to "Inside Edition," Kyana Chevalier, a senior, asked her classmate John Zamminer to go to the dance with her at Largo High School in Upper Marlboro, Maryland.

In a video she posted to Facebook, Chevalier comes into a classroom and shows Zamminer a sign that says, “Do you want to have a ball at homecoming with me?”

Zamminer happily agrees, and becomes emotional.

She said, “Now we’re going to be best friends, right? We’re going to have a great time at homecoming, right?” and the pair shares a high-five.

Chevalier told "Inside Edition" that Zamminer makes her school days “better,” and she was afraid he’d be left out of the dance.

‘He's no different than the rest of us’

“Everyone started to ask people [to the dance] and I was going to ask my best friend but then I thought about it when I saw John and thought, ‘He’s probably not going because no one asked him,’" Chevalier said. “How sad is that? I said, 'I’m going to make him so happy because John deserves it.'”

Chevalier said she has known Zamminer since her sophomore year and she’s happy to go to the dance with him.

“I didn’t want him to miss out just because he has special needs,” Chevalier said.

Chevalier said she was bullied in middle school because of her stutter and has since sought ways to make others feel included.

“I hate it when I see people being bullied, or kids being left out because of something they can’t control,” she said. “I wanted to make sure John knows he's no different than the rest of us and that he can have a great time too.”

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