Over 40 strangers celebrate S.C. boy’s 12th birthday

What could’ve been a pity party turned into the celebration of a lifetime for one young boy.

Over 40 children and their families showed up to a South Carolina boy’s 12th birthday party after his friends from school bailed on the celebration at the last minute.

Jamel Nichols invited all of his school friends to his party — but at the eleventh hour, none of the boy’s pals were able to attend, prompting his mother, Zenas Jett, to take matters into her own hands.

The quick-thinking mother made a last-ditch plea in the form of a Facebook post, writing to see if any families within the Columbia community would be able to attend.

“Unfortunately Jamel’s friends at school just bailed on him at the last moment. We were going from house to house and I was speaking with parents, and unfortunately, no one was able to attend,” Jett told CBS affiliate WUSA 9.

“So I just thought that I’d reach out to the community, so I made the post on Facebook.”

To her shock and delight, the response was overwhelming. Her post received over 100 comments, reactions and messages. Jamel’s slime-themed birthday party ended up being a smash.

Videos of the event showed young children gathered around a joyful Jamel, singing him “Happy Birthday.”

“I made a lot of friends I didn’t know, it was really fun,” Jamel told the outlet.

“Thank you and thank you for supporting me, and for coming out. You could have been somewhere else, you could have been doing what you wanted to do but instead, you came to my party, so thank you,” he later added.

While the young boy has now gained a newfound sense of community, the situation has helped other children, too.

Ashley Berendzen said her children, one who has autism and one who was born during the height of the pandemic, also benefitted by attending Jamel’s celebration.

“Our children don’t have a whole lot of friends or peers their age. I have a son that has autism and his social skills are a little bit awkward sometimes. I also have another son that is two and he is a COVID baby so his social skills aren’t that great,” Berendzen said.

“Everyone at this party was so friendly and warm and inviting, and a lot of them are from similar situations,” she noted.

The parents and children who attended the party exchanged numbers and plan to meet up again.