From an early age, children start to notice what makes them different from one another. Girls are well aware that they are dissimilar to boys in some aspects. A dark-skinned individual is going to notice that their skin is more pigmented than their lighter-skinned counterparts. And at some point, children start to distinguish their difference in height, weight, and age in comparison to other people they see.
What makes almost-2-year-old Oliver “Ollie” Garza-Pena different from many kids is that he has a condition called caudal regression syndrome that affects how his lower body develops. Due to his diagnosis, the youngster uses a wheelchair to get around. Although he’s young, he can’t help but notice that other children around his age range and height are able to walk and run on two legs. Those are things that he has never done. Ollie may not be able to yet verbalize how that makes him feel, but it must feel out of place to an extent.
But one day during a Target store trip with his mother, Ollie was floored when he saw a particular advertisement hanging in the boys’ clothing section. In the ad, there was a boy a little older than Ollie who was modeling target clothing in a wheelchair.
“Today Oliver stopped me dead in his tracks and turned back around to see this picture that he spotted! He just stared at it in awe!” Ollie’s mom started off in a Facebook post. “He recognized another boy like him, smiling and laughing on a display at Target.”
Ollie’s mom was thrilled that her son had the opportunity to see someone who holds a physical similarity as him.
“Oliver sees kids every day, but he never gets to see kids like him. This was amazing! I am so happy that other kids that pass through here with their parents, will see this!”
The mom is a firm believer that showcasing diverse people is important and that it should include those with disabilities. People in wheelchairs or who use crutches, individuals featuring a physical birth defect, and those with a different number of limbs would fall into that category.
“There is a lot of focus on representing diversity, but representing people with disabilities is just as important!” she said.
Since February 4, 2020, the post has garnered over 34,000 shares, which stunned Oliver’s mother!
“This post was shared so much that it made it to the family and the boy in the Target display. Thank you, Colton, in Massachusetts for making a difference [sic]!!” Oliver’s mom said in an update.
Check out the following video to see Ollie’s face when he sees the Target advertisement. He’s completely wonderstruck!
And if you want to get more updates about Ollie, be sure to ‘like’ his Facebook page.
