When it comes to making friends at school, some kids have it easier than others.
If you’re loud, sociable, and considered “normal” by your classmates, you’ll fit right in. If you’re shy or unique in any way, it’s likely that you’ll have a harder time winning around your classmates.
10-year-old Mackenzie Moretter knows all about the struggle of making friends.
The bubbly little girl was diagnosed with a rare genetic disorder, Sotos Syndrome, when she was 1.
According to Mackenzie, this makes it hard for her to make friends at school – and when she invited her classmates to her birthday party, she was rejected by every single one of them.
No child should have to face the heartbreak of a birthday with no guests, so Mackenzie’s mom, Jenny, took action.
On her personal Facebook profile, she wrote a plea to the local moms in her area, asking if anyone would be willing to attend her daughter’s party.
She wrote:
“My daughter has Sotos Syndrome which means she has development delays such as speech and learning. She is incredibly loving and wants more than anything to have friends. At school she struggles and is often alone on the playground. As a mother, it is heartbreaking being (sic) you want your children to be happy.”
She reassured moms that they didn’t need to bring a gift or just stay long – all that was required was that they bought their daughters.
It’s a plea that no mom should have to make on behalf of their child, but Jenny was desperate.
She hoped that at least 10 friends in her local area would be able to show up at Mackenzie’s party. Amazingly, she received a much bigger response than she ever could have expected.
When word got round about Mackenzie’s situation, the entire community rallied together to make sure she had a fantastic day.
Over 300 people attended the party, most of them strangers to Mackenzie.
Guests included Minnesota Vikings player Charles Johnson and his family, as well as Elsa from Frozen.
According to Mackenzie’s dad, Matthew Moretter, she had a tumor fused to her spine, which is how doctors discovered her condition when she was 1. He told KARE 11:
“It causes gigantism where kids grow at a faster pace. So Mackenzie is a lot taller than other classmates. Kids are friendly to her, but she doesn’t have friends. No one calls and talks to her. I’ll show up at her school and she will be playing alone.”
Children are supposed to see past their differences, but it looks like Mackenzie’s classmates missed the memo.
Thankfully, hundreds of strangers in the little girl’s community proved to her that there is kindness in the world – you just sometimes have to look for it.
In her party marquee, wearing a t-shirt that read “courage”, Mackenzie made a short speech:
“I have a hard time making friends in school, but thanks to all of you … my voice was heard. I love you all.”
It’s a day she’ll probably never forget, and it’s all thanks to the kindness of strangers, many of whom brought Mackenzie presents and hung around for hours, making sure she had the best day ever.
You can check out the heartwarming clips from Mackenzie’s birthday party below.
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