When Micheal Conrad was sent a fake homecoming invite, bullies thought that they had struck comedy gold.
But it was actually Micheal who ended up having the last laugh after a pageant queen publically invited him to go to the dance with her.
Micheal was a student at Taylorsville high school and has high-functioning autism, though it’s a disability that he handles well.
Like every other student in his year group, Micheal was anticipating the end of the year homecoming dance, which would take place on September 22nd.
Homecoming is an exciting time for many reasons.
Not only is it a celebration to mark the students’ final year at high school, but it’s also the chance for many teens to couple up and attend the event with their crush.
It’s become a tradition for students to perform grand gestures while asking their peers to homecoming, and Micheal found himself subject to one of these.
But sadly, the invite turned out to be part of a cruel prank played by bullies.
The culprits, who hadn’t been identified at the time the story broke, egged his home and left a note saying: ‘I’m sorry for the mess. But how about I make it up to you by taking you to Homecoming?’
The note was apparently written by Micheal’s cheerleader friend- but when he asked her, she said she’d had nothing to do with it.
“She said, ‘Michael, I already have a date. I’m so sorry. I had nothing to do with that.’ She felt bad,” his mom, Jennifer Conrad, told FOX News.
Micheal’s debating teacher, Jenn Palomino, was saddened by what had happened and felt determined to help.
“I just thought it was a terrible incident, I don’t know that there was anything I could do to turn it around if I’m completely honest,” Jen said.
But Jen found a way. First, she got in touch with a friend, Caitlin Thomas, a former Miss Lehi. Caitlin then sent a message to her friend– Miss Greater Salt Lake, Dexonna Talbot.
In that instant, a plan was formed.
“The second I heard about this, I knew I wanted to do something, Dexonna said. “I automatically broke down in tears, because just thinking about the fact that someone would go out of their way to make someone feel so bad is heartbreaking for me.”
Dexonna surprised Micheal during his History class with the sweetest homecoming invite- literally, as it included a bucket of Starburst, which was Micheal’s favorite candy.
Micheal happily agreed to accompany Dexonna to homecoming, and the adorable moment was caught on camera and shared by Jen onto Twitter.
The post soon went viral, and now has over 1.4k likes.
One of my students was recently the target of a bullying incident where some kids decided to make up a fake homecoming proposal. Well jokes on them because today Miss Greater Salt Lake came and asked HIM to homecoming. Bullying is lame and kindness always wins. pic.twitter.com/wgWBPAKEcC
— Taylorsville Debate (@tvilledebate) September 18, 2018
Speaking of her public invite, Dexonna said that she had planned the big moment specifically to show the bullies that they hadn’t won.
“I really wanted to make sure it was at the school. So that way, those people who have been bullying could see something positive was coming from this and that they weren’t winning,” she told FOX News.
When the big day arrived, Dexonna was a vision in a floaty pink dress, while James looked handsome in a smart black suit.
The pair had a brilliant time at the dance together, leaving Dexoanna gushing about what a great night she had had.
Hoco w the coolest guy out there! Thank you to everyone who made this a reality ❤️ pic.twitter.com/nbj2rsYiac
— Dexonna Talbot (@DexonnaTalbot) September 23, 2018
“I am so grateful for the opportunity I had to take him to his homecoming and witness so many people coming together to support a really good cause. We had a fantastic time!” Dexonna said. “I am so inspired by Michael and his conviction to not let the bullies get him down.”
Let this be a message to all bullies out there! Take a look at Dexonna and Micheal’s interview below.
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