Greg Awtry

I have been writing newspaper columns for twenty years. Usually they are about 700 words long. But there aren’t enough words to adequately explain what happened this week at the Alpena High School.

Let’s start at the beginning. It was sixteen years ago on January 5, 2010, when my daughter Jamie went into labor and delivered Maddox McClintic to the world. It turned out there were “complications”. You see Maddox was born with Down syndrome, had some small holes in her heart and struggled to make it through her first night.

As time went on, we found she had a good ability to learn. For years she got outstanding therapy from the Alpena-Montmorency-Alcona Educational Service District (AMA ESD). As she entered school she got an Individual Educational Plan (ISD) specially designed for her, and still does at Alpena High.

Now a little bit about Maddox. She loves three things above all; people, school and birthdays. She is a social butterfly, zooming around speaking to everyone, working hard to fit in, and knows she is different than many other kids. That doesn’t slow her down one bit.

If you know Maddox, you know a day doesn’t go by without her mentioning her birthday. And there is no place she would rather be than in school on that special day. Well, Monday, January 5th, her 16th birthday, the Alpena schools were closed due to a large snowstorm. She was devastated. But what happened next exceeded all her expectations.

The following day she went to school as usual. That evening her brother was playing basketball on the Alpena Junior Varsity team. Of course, Maddox was there. Where else would Alpena Wildcats biggest fan be! At the halftime of the varsity game Maddox was picked out to have a chance to shoot a free-throw shot.

She sat on the players’ bench, when over the PA system they announced her name. Several of the Alpena football players lined up and gave her high fives as she made her way onto the court pumping her fists in the air. She was handed the basketball. Made her way to the free-throw line, but was allowed to take a couple steps closer. Without fear or hesitation she fired up the shot. It hit the front of the rim, bounced up and forward, dropping perfectly through the net.

To say the crowd went wild is to say yes, the crowd went wild! The football players shouted and gave her fist bumps. Maddox again, with fists in the air, made her way back to the stands. Then, the crowd of about 200 erupted in song, singing Happy Birthday to her. Her mother Jamie later wrote, “And then the student section… wow. They didn’t just sing Happy Birthday — they showed up for her. Arms around each other, voices loud, smiles everywhere. A whole section of kids choosing kindness, choosing to celebrate someone else, choosing to make a moment bigger than the game. It wrapped around her like a hug and turned a great moment into a magical one.”

But here’s what really happened. The students, players and fans gave Maddox the most important thing on her birthday list, which didn’t include and gifts. She had written she only wanted only special moments, one included being sung Happy Birthday at school. Her list also included, “make a basketball shot, go to a sleepover, see my best friends on the varsity football and basketball teams, go to Applebee’s with the girls’ Alpena swim team, spend more time with family and friends, and finally, get proposed to by a boy later in my life.”

There aren’t enough words to describe what that night meant to Maddox. There aren’t enough words to describe the love that poured out in that gym. There aren’t enough words to explain how the entire Alpena community, including the Alpena High School, has embraced not only Maddox, but all children with disabilities, changing people’s lives for the better, and forever. Now that’s a gift money can’t buy.

The world can be a cruel place, but for a brief moment in time, in a small town in Northeast Michigan, we saw a glimpse of the great humanity of the American people, something that leaves a lump in the throat, and hope in the heart.

And, there aren’t enough words to say “Thank you Alpena”, for making dreams come true.

If you have anything to add, feel free to email me at gregawtry@awtry.com