On December 4th, students at Ouachita High School will gather for their annual homecoming basketball game. According to teacher Tami Green, there may not be a dry eye in the gymnasium that day. It all has to do with one special 15 year old girl.

For most of these sophomores at Ouachita High School, they've been together since pre-school. They've learned the same subjects. They've had the same teachers and shared the same gossip at lunch for twelve years. You could say they're a close class. So, when we asked them about one student in particular, we figured they know her pretty well.

"She's very sweet and lovely. She's very caring," says Sophomore Cecily McDermott. Sophomore Thomas Trammel adds, "She doesn't complain. She always has a smile on her face."

Not one mentioned 15 year old Katie Rickman's wheelchair or the fact that she has Cerebral Palsy. Katie is just Katie, an energetic tenth grader who never complains and always has a smile.

"She is constantly positive," says teacher Tami Green. "In fact, the words I can't are not even in her vocabulary. I've never heard her speak the words I can't."

"She makes you feel good inside," says Thomas Trammel. "When you feel like you want to give up you can say hey look at Katie, she has been doing it forever. You know, it puts a smile on your face."

So when it was time to elect a maid for this year's homecoming game, someone to represent the entire 10th grade class, they chose Katie.

"I thought, well there's plenty of other people who get a chance so why not she get a chance," says Trammel. "I stuck my hand up and voted for Katie and everybody else voted Katie."

She was excited to say the least. Instead of English and math and lunch room gossip, it's now all about finding the perfect dress and picking an escort. But it doesn't take a dress, crown, or title. All it takes is a smile to know this young lady is something special.