Florida Mom Searches for Mystery Child in Heartwarming Photo With Her Disabled Son
— -- One mom experienced a touching moment last week when she witnessed an unknown boy interacting with her 18-month-old son, who is wheelchair-bound, at a local science center.
Now, she's trying to find the identity of the child to express her gratitude for his random act of kindness.
"I would love to thank him," Katie Myers of West Palm Beach, Florida, told ABC News today. "I would just like this child to know how he’s impacting the world just by being kind. Also, I'd love his parents to know they have an amazing child and how he’s engaging and treating everyone the same."
Myers, a mom of one, said that at 7 months old, son Kaden was diagnosed with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), which causes the toddler's muscles to progressively weaken over time.
Because he is unable to walk, she often brings Kaden to the South Florida Science Center and Aquarium in West Palm Beach to enjoy some playtime.
"At home he doesn't have much room to explore, so we're there almost every day because, to Kaden, it's like his playground," Myers added. "It's big and has smooth, concrete floors. It's his own, accessible little paradise.
"We're there all the time, but we've never had an experience like this."
Myers said she and her sister brought Kaden to the science center Thursday for a day of fun.
While there, she said she noticed a boy, a few years older than Kaden, showing kindness and assisting him at one of the exhibits.
"Since he's [Kaden's] in a wheelchair, if he drops a ball or toy on the floor, he can't pick it up," Myers said. "He [the boy] was helping him reach up to grab a ball and put on the device.
"This was extra special because he was just a kid," she added. "This boy didn’t see Kaden's wheelchair, he just saw Kaden and that’s something that doesn’t happen often."
Myers then snapped a photo of the moment and posted it on Kaden's community Facebook page, where it racked up over 225,000 “likes” and upward of 51,000-plus “shares.”
In the caption, Myers wrote:
"To the little boy at the science museum, I don't know who you are, but thank you for being amazing. You let my son play and engage with you. You helped him pick up balls from the floor when you saw that he could not. You didn't ask what was wrong with him or why he couldn't walk, you just saw him. Kaden is a lot like you, he is very curious and wildly smart. He wants to know how everything works.
“Thank you for helping him turn the lever when you noticed he was too weak to do it himself. You will probably never see this but just by being you, you make this world better. #cureSMA #kadencan"
Myers said she hopes the photo of Kaden and his mystery friend will help to spark more awareness about SMA, and that researchers become closer to finding a cure.
