GASTON COUNTY, N.C. — Madison Harris and her mother Angela Harris have been living in a bubble for more than a year due to underlying health conditions. Madison Harris's big 16th birthday was approaching, while they were in quarantine recently, and her mother knew that it wasn't going to be the sweet sixteen she was hoping for.
“We don’t have much family, and what we have we can’t gather with right now, so this makes it harder," Angela Harris told WCNC Charlotte.
This has been a really challenging season for so many, especially for those that have been living in isolation. On top of taking her schooling home and fully remote, at 16 years old, you want to socialize with your friends.
"She is not able to because of the pandemic and it's taking its toll. She’s gotten depressed and had some anxiety," Angela Harris said.
So with all of that, her mother wanted to do something to brighten what's been a very tough last year.
"I thought to reach out on the Nextdoor app to my community and ask if they would send cards," she said.
She didn't ask for money or gifts, but the post quickly captured the hearts of so many in the area, helping fulfill a desire to make a 16th birthday special.
"I just wanted to give Madison something for her birthday that I couldn’t give her, which was people," Angela Harris said.
More than 100 people from all over Gaston County that saw Angela Harris's Nextdoor post ended up sending Madison Harris a birthday card, money, jewelry, balloons, and even a painting.
Strangers wrote her words of encouragement.
"The response was overwhelming. It was more than expected. We didn’t ask for those things but people sent those things out of the kindness of their heart, and we are really grateful," Angela Harris said.
Angela Harris reached out to WCNC Charlotte hoping this could be another avenue to thank the community for making her daughter's birthday a sweet sixteen and showing that a simple act of kindness makes a huge impact.
If you too would like to wish Madison Harris a Happy 16th Birthday, you can mail a card to PO Box 445 Lowell, North Carolina 28098
Contact Rachel Lundberg at rlundberg@wcnc.com or follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.