When the entire senior class at Liberty High School in Nevada started cheering Edgar’s name, he said it made him feel “special.”
The autistic teen had been crowned prom king thanks to a kind gesture from a fellow classmate.
At Liberty High School, it’s the teachers and coaches that nominate the prom king and queen.
Though Edgar did receive nominations, he didn’t make it into the top four slot.
His fellow classmate Shaun Mabanta, however, did.
But Shaun knew how much being prom king would mean to Edgar and decided to give up his slot.
He then asked his teachers if Edgar could take his place.
Once the faculty was on board, Shaun launched a campaign to get Edgar elected.
“When we obliged with his request he began to promote Edgar for king,” Liberty High School Special Education Teacher and Student Council Advisor Ashlee Vaness told Metro.
“The student body got behind the campaign and social media was inundated with promotional material to vote Edgar king.”
Come prom night, Edgar had enough votes for a victory landslide.
“I wanted him to make top four from the beginning,” Edgar told KSNV News 3 Las Vegas. “I just simply asked Edgar to take my place.”
The entire room was screaming and cheering “Edgar” as loud as they possibly could during Edgar’s coronation.
“It was an honor to crown Edgar as Prom King and watch the student body light up. When he won, we all won,” said Vaness.
Vaness said that it was a truly “magical” moment.
“Every student who votes for him felt a part of that win. Every person that was there felt the magic. Our student body started chanting his name, they took their phones out and light up the room with their flashlight ‘lighters’ showing their support to our king.”
“Special, I feel special,” Edgar said of being nominated.
Vaness said that Edgar became quite emotional over his win.
“He teared up. He told me he was so happy,” she said. “The first thing he said to me was ‘my mom. I think she’s going to like this. I’m king!”’
After being crowned king, Edgar danced with the prom queen to Ed Sheeran’s “Perfect” as his classmates looked on.
“Once we saw him being crowned prom king, it literally brought tears to my eyes that a simple act could make such a big difference,” Shaun said.
Shaun’s act of kindness didn’t end there. He went on to start a kindness club at his school to make sure “no student feels invisible.” The local news picked up Edgar’s story and it ended up going viral.
“So wonderful to see a young man show such compassion and kindness! Also Kudos to his parents for raising such a wonderful young man!” commented one individual on KSNV News 3 Las Vegas’ Facebook.
“I love to see when young teens think of others who are different from them. This will be a great memory Edgar will have his whole life. So proud of the teen who forfeited being in the top 4 picks and started campaigning for Edgar around the school,” said another.
Below you can watch Edgar’s big moment, followed by a news story of the act of kindness!
View this post on Instagram
Please SHARE this with your friends and family.
