NewsCommunityVista SemanalLocal

Actions

Homecoming queen and king give up their crowns in a selfless act

Posted at 6:24 PM, Oct 11, 2019
and last updated 2019-10-14 18:35:44-04

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Two local high school students are going viral for the kindness they showed when they were crowned king and queen at their homecoming game. It was all to honor their fellow classmates.
The two Veterans Memorial High School seniors were crowned last Friday only long enough for a picture.
Principal Scott Walker said what happened next brought everyone to their feet.
"There was a standing ovation," Walker said. "There was chills, myself included, a lot of tears of joy. It was just one of those moments that you'll never forget."
October 4th, under the Friday night lights, the Eagles are up 7-0 at the half during homecoming. The students are eager to see who will be the next king and queen.
Brandon Moreno and Madison McDaniel's names were called and they were crowned. But just minutes after becoming high school royalty they called on two other students to take their place.
"Well, actually this was her idea," Moreno said pointing to McDaniel -- who is also his girlfriend.
The couple said it all started with a phone conversation.
"We were just stoked to be nominated," he said. "She said like, 'if we won wouldn't it be cool if we gave the crowns?' And I was like yeah for sure that'll be awesome."
McDaniel said the second they were crowned they immediately knew their next move.
"We took pictures first then we just looked at each other and then we were like, 'let's do it!'" McDaniel said. "So we gave them our crowns."
Both Robyn Ponce and Seth Thompson -- seniors who were also one of five homecoming couples nominated -- said it made their day. They said it made them feel happy.
Edna Salazar, the school's special education teacher, said she likes to see inclusion when it comes to her students. She said her students deserve the same high school experience as their peers.
"It was beautiful in itself just seeing her place the crown on her," Salazar said. "It was truly amazing and seeing the smile on her face and the shock on his face was just priceless."
Both Moreno and McDaniel chalked it up to simplicity -- they say all the students at their school are equals.