A Tennessee woman wanted to celebrate her younger sister's birthday in a special way after their mother passed away in April from brain cancer.
But when they sent out party invites and only one person showed up, strangers stepped in to lend a hand.
Jennifer Sexton, who had battled brain cancer for 11 years, passed away on April 12 leaving behind Chloe Sexton, 28, and Charlotte Sexton, 8. Chloe revealed this to CNN on Saturday.
Charlotte's legal guardian is now Chloe.
Chloe replied, "I sent the invitations out early and I only heard back from one person. "I was disappointed that I wasn't able to give her the birthday I wanted to."
After losing her mother in the middle of the academic year, Charlotte was forced to change schools. Chloe claimed that her parents and new classmates were both aware of her mother's passing.
Chloe then turned to TikTok to vent her anger.
As of Saturday, that video has more than 30,000 comments and over 9 million views.
Chloe reported that her comments and inbox started to overflow with messages from individuals wanting to assist with the party's decorations, attend, and inquiring what to send as a gift for Charlotte.
This was the first time, Chloe remarked, that I witnessed individuals acting on their empathy. "The outpouring of love made me feel like I wasn't simply a face online, but that my experience mattered to people," the author says.
Thanks to the assistance of complete strangers, Chloe was able to surprise Charlotte on July 9 with visitors, balloons, gifts, and more.
A woman brought her horse from Oxford, Mississippi so that she could give pony rides to the children at the party. Other women helped decorate the house and put together a balloon display.
People from all around came to visit throughout the day, even if only for 30 minutes. According to Chloe, there were once roughly 20 children living there.
A drive-by procession was also scheduled for Charlotte by an organization named Mid South Jeeps. About 25 to 30 jeeps passed by their Memphis home, some of which were handing out gifts and others of which were playing birthday music.
"Is this all for me?" she kept asking me. said Chloe. Her eyes were so huge, and there was so much enthusiasm.
In addition to being her first birthday without her mother, Chloe claimed that this was also her first birthday celebration ever. As her mother fought cancer for the majority of her life, Charlotte has never attended a party like this.
After the day was finished, Charlotte did tell me, "I think mama would've enjoyed today," Chloe recalled.