Ontario, Canada — A boy with asperger’s was about to throw a party for his 13th birthday last week. But after waiting a while, the invitations Odin Camus and his mom gave out were still left unanswered. His mom, Melissa Camus, decided to turn to social media for help.
Little did they know that they were in for a huge surprise.
In a desperate attempt to cheer her son up, Melissa pleaded for help at a local Facebook group called ‘Peterborough Moms Swap and Buy‘, where she talked about Odin’s struggles and how she just wants to cheer him up on his birthday. She asked members of the Facebook group to send a text message over to Odin via his brand new cell phone that he had received for his birthday. The message went viral.
Hours later, Odin was flooded with thousands of birthday greetings— from strangers, numerous celebrities, as well as politicians from all around the world. Hollywood actor Elijah Wood, Canadian MP Justin Trudeau, the Toronto Raptors, and the Toronto Maple Leafs were among those who sent their greetings to the young boy. Odin and his mom were overwhelmed.
On his actual birthday party, Odin was flanked by hundreds of guests who all went out of their way to wish him a happy birthday.
In an interview with CTV News, Melissa said she hopes that Odin’s story will bring “a sense of community” among those like Odin, who has Asperger’s. She told:
“I’m really hoping what comes out of it is more of a sense of community amongst those with Asperger’s, whether its adults, kids or their families. And beyond the sense of community that we’ve gotten from everybody worldwide, that the Asperger’s community gets a little bit tighter.”
Contributed by Althea Estrella Violeta
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j_MLxx_jurU