In the fall of 2016, Shadow Ridge High School was preparing to hold its homecoming dance. Like many students, 17-year-old Daniel Rivas wanted a date. Despite his efforts, he faced rejection, likely because he had Down syndrome. Just when hope seemed lost, a classmate named Kylie Fronius asked him to the dance, according to Inspiration Post.
Representative Image Source: Pexels | Kam Pratt
Kylie saw Daniel as more than a boy with Down syndrome; to her, he was a "Homie with an extra chromie." Her heartwarming gesture caught the community's attention and was covered by Fox5 Las Vegas, spreading rapidly. “I don’t think of kids that have a disability as being different,” Kylie said. “I think of them just being a normal person learning in a different way.”
Representative Image Source: Pexels | Mart Production
Daniel’s mother, Tonya Rivas, a real estate professional, was moved by Kylie’s empathy. “It’s not about that Daniel has a disability,” sheadded, “It’s Kylie didn’t see any disability. That is what your heart wants as a mom.”
On the day of the homecoming dance, the couple were visited by the host of Fox5 Surprise Squad, Monica Jackson, who brought with her a bounty of surprises. Sponsored by United Nissan and America First Credit Union, the FOX5 Surprise Squad makes their way around the towns of Las Vegas, surprising lucky viewers.
“Your story touched so many people,” Jackson told Kylie and Daniel. “It's gonna be a pretty special night for you,” Jackson asked and Kylie said yes. “So we want you guys to arrive in style,” said Jackson. As she was saying this, a gleaming Rolls Royce came rolling towards them. Tonya gasped in surprise covering her mouth with the palm of her hand.
The next segment of the footage showed the teen couple seated in the back seat of the car, overjoyed at the amazeballs surprise. The car drove through a sunlit roadway, arriving at Aliante casino where the teens were ushered inside a bistro. There they met Chef Franco De Furia who served them spaghetti with meatballs, which were Daniel’s favorite. For Kylie, a pizza was brought over. The meal was followed by desserts and pastries that the duo relished with delight.
“What are your hopes for Daniel after high school,” Jackson asked Tonya after lunch. Tonya said that Daniel wanted to go to college and become a chef. She said she’d try her best to give him the education he wished to pursue. In a few moments, the group arrived at another scene. Students in glittery party dresses were hooting and cheering for the couple. The footage caption revealed that it was a “Red carpet surprise” organized by the students of the school.
Representative Image Source: Pexels | Photo by Trinity Kubassek
The group walked inside and danced their hearts out. But the night of surprises wasn’t finished yet, “We are not done,” announced Jackson, adding, “We are sending you and your families to Disneyland.” The crowd burst into cheers and applause. There was another surprise for Daniel. After he passed out from high school, Daniel would receive a $10,000 scholarship.
When Daniel received his big surprise, Kylie wasn’t left out. Soon enough, she was gifted a glistening white brand-new Sentra. Don Forman, United Nissan’s owner extended the car towards Kylie as a surprise gift. She was gobsmacked. In addition, Daniel was also provided with ten tickets to his favorite Marvel’s Avengers station, which was disclosed in the behind-the-scenes footage. The day of surprises wrapped up. As Kylie and Daniel were seated in their newly-earned Rolls Royce, Kylie asked her partner, “You happy buddy?” He responded with a cool “Yeah!”
Representative Image Source: Pexels | Mart Production
This was not just a story of empathy and kindness, but also about acceptance and unconditional love for others. When one focuses on others’ abilities more than their disability, they subconsciously learn to love themselves. In the story, it was Kylie who poured her empathy and looked at Daniel like he was as special as others. In the process, she found her joy, which made the entire event so heartwarming for people.
Image Source: YouTube | @willmorin359
Nearly 8 million people watched their story and thousands commented. @maikahk1872 said, “I'm a grown man in tears right now. I pray my daughters grow to think and act like Kylie. What a beautiful soul she is! God bless her and her amazing mother who raised her right!” Lauding Kylie, @jameslivingstone7428 commented, “This young lady knows more about compassion and caring than many adults and so-called leaders. Well done young lady, your parent must be so proud of you, and if not, millions of others are!” @junedeike6144 added, “Thank God there are still young women with big hearts like this girl. She will be great when she gets older. Don't change girl. You are the best.”
Image Source: YouTube | @Miyuki200812
Another person, @garysluhan7903, whose sister also had Down’s Syndrome reflected that, “These kids are just like us!” No wonder, the young lady won everyone’s hearts by treating Daniel with respect and love. “You just saw a young lady with a huge heart, and she was inspirational,” were Forman’s words from the footage. Forman said that being a part of the Surprise Squad was “truly fulfilling.”
A woman deprived of her sleep.Image via 
A Looney Tunes classic. 
Artist's rendering of a brain overlaid a woman's head.Image via 
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Love, Mom.Photo from Heidi Johnson 
A teen boy having a hard time. 
Why do some folks use social media but don't engage?
Psychologist says people who never comment on social media share these 5 positive traits
For over 20 years, social media has developed into a staple in many people’s day-to-day lives. Whether it’s to keep in communication with friends and family, following the thoughts of celebrities, or watching cat videos while sipping your morning coffee, there seem to be two types of social media users: commenters and lurkers.
The term “lurker” sounds equally mysterious and insidious, with some social media users writing them off as non-participants at best or voyeurs at worst. However, mindfulness expert Lachlan Brown believes these non-commenters have some very psychologically positive and healthy traits. Let’s take a look at how each one of these traits could be beneficial and see how fruitful lurking might be even though it can drive content creators crazy.
1. Cautious about vulnerability
Consciously or not, making a post online or commenting on one puts you and your words out there. It’s a statement that everyone can see, even if it’s as simple as clicking “like.” Doing so opens yourself up to judgment, with all the good, bad, and potential misinterpretation that comes with it. Non-commenters would rather not open themselves up to that.
These silent users are connected to a concept of self-protection by simply not engaging. By just scrolling past posts or just reading/watching them without commentary, they’re preventing themselves from any downsides of sharing an opinion such as rejection, misunderstanding, or embarrassment. They also have more control on how much of themselves they’re willing to reveal to the general public, and tend to be more open face-to-face or during one-on-one/one-on-few private chats or DMs. This can be seen as a healthy boundary and prevents unnecessary exposure.
Considering many comment sections, especially involving political topics, are meant to stir negative emotional responses to increase engagement, being extra mindful about where, when, and what you comment might not be a bad idea. They might not even take the engagement bait at all. Or if they see a friend of theirs post something vulnerable, they feel more motivated to engage with them personally one-on-one rather than use social media to publicly check in on them.
2. Analytical and reflective mindset
How many times have you gone onto Reddit, YouTube, or any other site and just skimmed past comments that are just different versions of “yes, and,” “no, but,” or “yes, but”? Or the ever insightful, formerly popular comment “First!” in a thread? These silent browsers lean against adding to such noise unless they have some valid and thoughtful contribution (if they bother to comment period).
These non-posters are likely wired on reflective thinking rather than their initial intuition. Not to say that all those who comment aren’t thoughtful, but many tend to react quickly and comment based on their initial feelings rather than absorbing the information, thinking it over, researching or testing their belief, and then posting it. For "lurkers," it could by their very nature to just do all of that and not post it at all, or share their thoughts and findings privately with a friend. All in all, it’s a preference of substance over speed.
3. High sense of self-awareness
Carried over from the first two listed traits, these silent social media users incorporate their concern over their vulnerability and their reflective mindset into digital self-awareness. They know what triggers responses out of them and what causes them to engage in impulsive behavior. It could be that they have engaged with a troll in the past and felt foolish. Or that they just felt sad after a post or got into an unnecessary argument that impacted them offline. By knowing themselves and seeing what’s being discussed, they choose to weigh their words carefully or just not participate at all. It’s a form of self-preservation through restraint.
4. Prefer to observe rather than perform
Some folks treat social media as information, entertainment, or a mix of both, and commenting can feel like they’re yelling at the TV, clapping alone in a movie theater when the credits roll, or yelling “That’s not true!” to a news anchor that will never hear them. But contrary to that, social media is a place where those yells, claps, and accusations can be seen and get a response. By its design, social media is considered by experts and the media as performative, regardless of whether it is positive or negative. Taking all of the previously mentioned traits into account, one can see why they would prefer to “observe the play” rather than get up on the stage of Facebook or X.
On top of that, these non-commenters could be using social media differently than those who choose to fully engage with it. Using this type of navigation, there may be nothing for them to comment about. Some commenters are even vying for this for their mental health. There are articles about how to better curate your social media feeds and manipulate algorithms to create a better social media experience to avoid unnecessary conflict or mentally tiring debate.
If you go on a blocking spree on all of your accounts and just follow the posters that boost you, it could turn your social media into a nice part of your routine as you mainly engage with others face-to-face or privately. In terms of commenting, if your curated Instagram is just following cute dogs and all you have to offer for a comment is “cute dog,” you might just enjoy the picture and then move on with your day rather than join in the noise. These non-commenters aren’t in the show and they’re fine with it.
5. Less motivated by social validation
The last trait that Brown showcases is that social media users who browse without posting tend to be independent from external validation, at least online. Social media is built to grow through feedback loops such as awarding likes, shares, and reposts of your content along with notifications letting you know that a new person follows you or wants to connect. This can lead many people to connect their activity on social media with their sense of self worth, especially with adolescents who are still figuring out their place in the world and have still-developing brains.
Engaging in social media via likes, shares, comments, and posts rewards our brains by having them release dopamine, which makes us feel good and can easily become addictive. For whatever reason, non-commenters don’t rely on social media as a means to gauge their social capital or self worth. This doesn’t make them better than those who do. While some non-commenters could have healthier ways to boost their self worth or release dopamine into their systems, many get that validation from equally unhealthy sources offline. That said, many non-commenters’ silence could be a display of independence and self confidence.
Whether you frequently comment online or don’t, it’s good to understand why you do or don’t. Analyzing your habits can help you determine whether your online engagement is healthy, or needs to be tweaked. With that information, you can then create a healthy social media experience that works for you.