A special night for a special prom queen

Senior prom night is always a special night for Cape Girardeau Central High School students, many of whom have waited their entire academic careers to don that special dress or suit and dance the night away. The seniors are so close to kissing high school goodbye, they can almost taste it.

This year's prom, on April 25, was even more special than past years, as Carley House was crowned prom queen, and she sealed it by kissing her prom king on the cheek.

Carley is 18 and has Down syndrome. More important, she has a big heart and a contagious smile, which have garnered her the affection of students throughout the school, and they decided weeks before the prom that they wanted to nominate her to represent their school as prom queen.

"My heart melted," her mother, Tamilla, told the Southeast Missourian's Katie Lamb. "It was so sweet that this group of kids has this bond with her," she added.

On prom night, Carley went from being a nominee to being a queen. All eyes were on her. Even the prom king, Ryan May, was so excited for Carley that he cannot even remember how he felt when he was announced king. What mattered was how Carley felt, and she was thrilled.

As the 2015 queen and king danced together, Carley was living a moment that she likely will never forget. This is what her peers wanted for her. Carley, who loves to cook and plays basketball in the Special Olympics, is known for taking care of others, being compassionate, and making everyone smile. Her friends have spent years celebrating holidays with her, going out with her for ice cream and including her in social events. They wanted to top it off with something extra memorable. And they did.

"The main thing for us out of this whole experience is just that our family is forever indebted to the class of 2015 for their kindness and making prom night the most special night for her," Tamilla said.

The story resonated beyond the schools' walls, too. The Central High School story, as of Tuesday morning, had reached nearly 72,000 people on Facebook. It had been shared 221 times. Indeed, it's a story worth sharing.

We often hear people paint today's teens with a broad brush -- as a self-centered, social media-crazed lot who care only about themselves. But Cape students belie that stereotype. They found as much joy -- if not more -- in Carley's coronation as they would have in their own. When her name was called and her head crowned, she alone was prom queen, but every person present rejoiced, and we think that makes Cape Central students and Carley House equally special.