A group of middle school boys were playing basketball when they saw something going on in the stands that made them run off the court to help.
Desiree Andrews works as a cheerleader in Kenosha, Wisconsin. She has Down’s syndrome. She hasn’t let this stop her from going after her dreams, and she was so happy when she made the cheerleading team at her school.
During a recent basketball game, however, Desiree was picked on by fans from a school whose team was playing against hers. When three of her school’s players saw what was happening, they rushed to her side to help.
Chase, Miles, and Scooter, who are Desiree’s friends, ran off the court to help “D.”
“The kids in the audience were making fun of D, so we all stepped forward,” Chase said.
“We were mad. We didn’t like that. “Miles, who is 14 years old, said, “We asked our sports director to talk to the people and tell them not to make fun of her.”
Since this happened, the boys have become friends with Desiree and even walk her to class to make sure no one picks on her in the halls.
Desiree’s dad, Cliff Andrews, cried when he found out what the boys had done for her. He told her that a character on the hit TV show “Glee” had made her want to try cheerleading.
“They have a cheerleader with Down syndrome, and she told me, ‘If she can be a cheerleader, I can be one too,’” he said.
Since then, the whole school has come together to support Desiree. At the last few basketball games, the crowd has chanted “Whose house? “D’s Place!” This phrase is even on a banner that Athletic Director Timothy Nieman had put up.
Nieman said, “This is what it means to stand up and be a real team, not just a basketball team but a team of people who will help someone.”
We applaud these three young men for helping Desiree when she needed it the most.
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