Airline Passengers Give A 5-Year-Old Boy A Ceremony Mid-Flight After He Missed His Kindergarten Graduation
The little boy was able to still celebrate the milestone of graduating kindergarten thanks to a heartfelt moment with other passengers on a flight.
Ermolaev Alexander | Shutterstock A little boy was extremely disappointed after learning that he wouldn't be able to attend his much-deserved graduation, but things quickly turned around for him while on a flight with his family.
Five-year-old Xavier Rivas can be seen beaming from ear to ear in a TikTok video posted by his mother, Janeiry Jay Rivas. The video showed the heartwarming moment when her son was able to still get his accolades despite not being able to walk across the actual graduation stage.
Airline passengers gave him a ceremony mid-flight after he missed his kindergarten graduation.
Xavier and his family were scheduled to travel to Puerto Rico for a family wedding on May 15, but unfortunately, it meant that the 5-year-old would miss out on walking across the kindergarten stage. His mom, Janeiry, told FOX News Digital that they were traveling from Orlando, Florida to the island for her cousin's wedding.
"The date was set and based off last year’s kindergarten graduation. I thought we were in the clear since the 2023 graduation was the Saturday after the last day of school," she told the news outlet. However, that didn't end up being the case and her son's graduation date was set as the same day as the family wedding.
Knowing that her son would be missing out on his graduation, she decided to attend the practice ceremony, hoping that he wouldn't notice that he was missing out on the real deal. However, just days before his graduation, she learned that her son was being teased at school for missing the event, ultimately making her feel bad about the entire ordeal.
"[He] just felt sad [that] he couldn't attend the actual graduation," she said.
Taking matters into her own hands, Janeiry brought her son's cap and gown with them to Puerto Rico, hoping to get a picture of him on the flight with the captain. When the pair boarded the flight, Janeiry and Xavier walked up to one of the Frontier flight attendants and admitted that they were missing his graduation.
Hearing this, the flight attendant immediately got an idea of how to make this flight special for Xavier and his mother.
"He is missing his graduation, his kindergarten graduation today. And because he chose to fly Frontier instead, we are giving him his graduation ceremony on this flight," the attendant said over the public address system, according to ABC News.
About 30 minutes before the flight was scheduled to land, the flight attendants announced that Xavier would be walking down the plane aisle to celebrate the occasion.
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With "Pomp and Circumstance" playing over the loudspeaker, Xavier came down the aisle and broke out in a grin as the other passengers applauded him while a few extended their hands for a high-five.
"He was just beyond excited, like, his face lit up," Janeiry told Good Morning America. "He was super, super excited, getting high fives from people and getting cheered on."
The little boy was even presented with gifts, and his tassel was moved to the side for him as well. Janeiry admitted that Xavier was so "excited" and "felt so special" to the point where he was telling everyone at his family's wedding that he had two graduations.
It's such a heartwarming moment, and while a kindergarten graduation might not mean much to some people, it's still a cause for celebration.
It's clear that Xavier's mom didn't want him to miss out on a milestone such as that one, and it's equally amazing that all of the passengers and flight attendants banded together to give the 5-year-old an experience that he'll surely be talking about for months to come.
Nia Tipton is a Chicago-based entertainment, news, and lifestyle writer whose work delves into modern-day issues and experiences.