Shellie Eyre Crowned Homecoming Queen

The story of Shellie Eyre is of a life lived with courage, determination and unrestricted love for everyone she meets. She was born in 1979 with Down syndrome and is the second child of a family of four children. At three years of age she experienced a major setback in the form of a stroke that left her paralyzed on her left side. But her optimistic outlook and her boundless perseverance made it obvious to all who knew her that she would succeed in overcoming whatever obstacles would be presented to her.

Her school years were a wonderful time of learning a gaining many friends. This culminated in her senior year at Murray High School in Utah when she was selected as the 1997 Homecoming Queen. She had been one of the most popular girls in school because of her easy smile and loving heart. Her landslide victory was due in part to a wonderfully accepting student body that embraced unselfish inclusion, and to Shellie's attitude toward all her classmates. When asked why everyone liked Shellie so much, one of the students said, "It's hard not to love Shellie when you know how much she loves you."

The evening she was selected as Homecoming Queen was an experience that few will ever forget. Even the other Homecoming Candidates felt that there were no losers that night, but that they, and all who were there, had participated in an event where every person had won.

Shellie's inspirational life is an example of what true beauty can be and where love, acceptance, and inclusion can triumph over any disabilities.