Students name girl with Down's syndrome Homecoming Queen
Dennis Friend, Staff Writer , Dennis.Friend@nonpareilonline.com
Staff photo/Dennis Friend - From left, Abraham Lincoln High School seniors Taylor Graybill, Victoria Alba, Michelle Malick and Ashley Clark pose after Alba won the Homecoming Queen title.
Who would have thought Victoria Alba could be the Abraham Lincoln High School Homecoming Queen?
Many Abraham Lincoln High School students did, since they voted for her.
The other girls on the royal court did, girls like Taylor Graybill and Ashley Clark. They got behind the choice when the voting started and they pushed to see her win.
"She's so outgoing," Graybill said, and Clark added, "She knows everyone."
Graybill and Clark worked with senior Michelle Malick and others, lobbying fellow students to make sure their friend received enough votes to become this year's Homecoming Queen at the dance on Oct. 4.
Alba claims she knew she could be queen. It was her dream. She admits to an abundance of confidence, "and I have friends. Lots of friends. A lot of guy friends, too. I hang out at lunch with my friends, my homeys, people at school."
Her mother, Kyla Alba, thought her daughter might have a shot, but she wasn't sure, since the outgoing teen has Down's syndrome.
"The part I find fabulous is, her peers have accepted her unconditionally. My understanding is a group of senior girls lobbied to get her onto the court," Kyla Alba said.
Kyla Alba was right, Graybill said. "Victoria was the only one of the six of us who deserved it."
Malick explained that "we decided she'd be the best person to represent the senior class. So we spread the word and worked together."
Taylor added, "Some people didn't even know she was a senior."
There are 1,400 students at Abraham Lincoln High School, and Alba needed to get the largest number of votes to win.
"The whole student body voted, it wasn't just us," Graybill said.
"We just helped pass the word, we're good at that," Malick added with a grin.
"This is good. I'm glad she got it, she deserved it," Clark said.
It's an annual tradition for high schools to choose a Homecoming King and Queen, as well as a royal court for an evening of dancing and celebration. A series of votes at A.L. narrowed the number of candidates leading up to the event. The top names made up the homecoming court.
"She was very, very excited," Kyla Alba said.
A cheer went up last Saturday when her name was announced and she went to the stage to join the rest of the court. The girls said the cheering, applause and shouts became thunderous when Alba won.
"It was loud. A lot of people were cheering for me. Then I danced with Blueberry," Alba said.
"Blueberry" is Tyler D. Johnson, the Homecoming King.
Since the Homecoming theme was "Gone Country," Alba's crown was a white cowboy hat, which she now has in "a safe place, my closet."
Alba and her friends recapped her memorable coronation Thursday. Alba told them, "I love to dance with cute boys," and giggled. So did Graybill, Malick and Clark.
"Were you surprised?" Graybill asked Alba.
"Yes. It was the best night of my whole life," Alba answered, prompting an "ahhhh" in unison from Graybill, Malick and Clark.
"It gave me goosebumps," Graybill said.
"Me, too," Malick said.
"Thanks," said Alba.
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