Going to the prom can be daunting to many teenagers, especially those who cannot find a prom date.
Carlos Colon from Haverhill High School was resigned to the idea of not going to the prom as he could not find himself a date. The 19-year old boy grew up with autism and blindness and had a twin sister, Brianna, who finished school a year ahead of him. As Carlos had just finished high school, Brianna already started her first year at Bryant College.
Brianna wanted to make her twin brother happy. She fully understood how important it is to go to the prom, an essential milestone in a teenager’s life. Unfortunately, Brianna was not able to experience her senior prom. The school had to cancel the event as the pandemic raged on.
The teenager saw this as an opportunity to experience going to the prom and to make her twin brother happy as he could finally go there with a date. And so, Brianna asked her brother out on a date for prom night!
“Just because he’s blind and autistic doesn’t mean he can’t have fun. I’m glad he got to experience it and he danced a lot, so I’m really glad he went and all that,” Brianna shared.
Briana and Carlos had a whale of a time at the prom dancing with other friends and classmates.
“I’m lucky to have experienced it this time with him and somebody that I love very much,” Brianna shared.
Their mother, Jomay Colon, previously approved of the idea and was glad that Brianna made Carlos feel at ease at the prom.
“Brianna approached me and was like why shouldn’t he go? Just because he’s blind and autistic doesn’t mean he can’t go to a prom,” their mom said.
Carlos and Brianna were born prematurely at 24 weeks. Their first few weeks outside their mother’s womb were full of difficulties. They were underweight and only weighed half a pound.
While Brianna coped with their abnormal conditions as an infant, Carlos developed more severe health complications. He became blind since he was an infant as his retinas got damaged. When the baby reached five months old, Carlos had another health complication. This time, he experienced a brain bleed.
Brianna truly enjoyed time with her brother. She took lots of photos of the prom to cherish the moment. Meanwhile, Carlos is dreaming of pursuing a college education at the Perkins School For The Blind.
Photos and videos of Brianna and Carlos flooded online as media sources found it heartwarming for Carlos to enjoy the prom with his twin sister, Brianna.
“He had the time of his life!”
A Haverhill woman brings her 19 yr old twin brother, who has special needs, to his hs senior prom,” TV personality Chris Flanagan wrote on Twitter.