A mother in Sydney, Australia has made a video tribute to her
16-year-old special needs daughter after she wasn't invited to her
year's school dance. Julie Webster posted the video tribute to her
daughter Josie on YouTube after discovering about the event on Facebook.
"She may not get to dress up and dance," Ms Webster says. "But … I will
continue to dance with her, even if no one else does."
Josie has Down's Syndrome, she goes on to say, but that has not stopped
her from living life to the fullest. She pays drums, dances and goes on
adventure holidays. In her short life, she has braved the Shotgun River
in New Zealand, journeyed to Uluru in Central Australia and crawled
through the Cu Chi tunnels in Vietnam. But last Thursday, Engadine High
School in southern Sydney held its Year Ten school formal and didn't
invite Josie.
The school dance was a lavish affair at Doltone House, which is just 20
minutes from Josie's school. Every Year Ten pupil, except four special
needs students including Josie, were invited. The girls dolled
themselves up in party dresses, the boys donned suits and ties and the
excited teenagers jumped into hired Hummers and headed off for their big
night. Afterwards, they posted photographs of themselves beaming in
their party clothes on Facebook.
Until then, neither Josie nor her mother, Julie Webster, knew a Year Ten school formal had even been planned.
"She was devastated," Ms Webster said. To
top it off, proceeds from ticket sales for the dance were going to fund
the Engadine High School special needs unit where Josie is among a
number of students with "mild" or "moderate" learning difficulties.
Engadine High principal Joanne Jarvis refused to comment but informed Ms
Webster that staff had no involvement in the party.
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