Student with autism crowned Knoch's homecoming queen
JEFFERSON TWP — Anna Knapp can’t help but tear up when she talks about the students at Knoch High School who voted her daughter, Phoebe, the 2018 homecoming queen.
“It’s an amazing thing for those kids to vote for a special needs kid who’s just a little different,” Knapp said of the students in grades nine through 12, all of whom voted to choose one girl from the homecoming court to advance to the status of queen.
Phoebe, who has regressive autism, is thrilled that she is the queen bee.
“The whole school voted for me!” Phoebe exclaimed with a huge smile. “My Mom is surprised that I’m homecoming queen.”
Anna feels the students voted for Phoebe because they have grown along with her as they all progressed through middle and high school at South Butler and, in the case of some on the homecoming court, in Saxonburg Spartans Cheerleading.
“I was thrilled and surprised,” Anna said. “They say children are our future and let’s hope so, because these kids are really special and treat her as a person.”
This is an excerpt — read more about Phoebe in Wednesday’s Butler Eagle.
