Mickey Deputy waited with anticipation on a Tuesday night as her mother, Jenny Deputy, told her to get in the car.
“We’re going to McDonald’s,” her mother told her.
With it being 9:30 p.m., Mickey was confused by her mother’s request. But she followed along anyway.
Mickey changed out of her pajamas and slipped into a blue and green dress, complemented by a sunflower bow, and sat at a table at the McDonald’s in Franklin, Ind.
As someone came around the corner, she heard a deep voice say, “Hi, Mickey.” She turned and grinned, her smile revealing a combination of bewilderment and excitement as Ball State basketball forward Trey Moses walked in.
“The smile on his face was as big as hers, that’s what I loved,” Jenny said.
Moses, a freshman out of Louisville, Ky., was on his way home on March 8 when he decided to surprise his new friend, Mickey.
This past weekend, Mickey competed in the local circuit of the Miss America Pageant and won the Spirit Award, as voted on by the contestants. Moses was there supporting her, a testament to their friendship and his passion
for helping children with special needs.
Moses’ passion
If you look at Moses’ Instagram, it is filled with posts of him and the friends he’s made. His bio reads “#TeamDownSyndrome.” Moses is not just a basketball player, but also a special education major on a mission to change the world.
“I have a real passion for those who have Down syndrome,” Moses said.
But Moses’ passion is transforming the lives of those with special needs everywhere. Moses said he first knew he wanted to teach special education when he was a freshman in high school. A classmate, Corey, who has special needs, was a huge high school basketball fan and befriended Moses. He also participated in Unified Basketball, a Special Olympics program where athletes play sports with those with special needs.
That is where Moses met Blake, another player in the league.
“Both of them just became like my brothers, and I knew I just wanted to do special education,” Moses said.
Moses gained notoriety after photos surfaced of him asking Ellie, a girl with Down syndrome he met during peer tutoring, to his high school prom. He asked her in front of their whole gym class by holding a sign with Taylor Swift lyrics written on it. Moses tweeted pictures of the prom proposal, and received a message from a woman saying she had two pit pass tickets to Taylor Swift’s concert in Louisville. Moses and Ellie went together.
The photo went viral. Moses said he was accused of posting the photo just for publicity, but that wasn’t the case.
“Something positive came out of it,” Moses said. “It was not only making her happy because of prom, but you don’t see a lot of kids with disabilities get the attention that she got. If they can be looked at as not a different person but just as regular person, that’s my main goal.”
Moses, who came to Ball State primarily for the special education program, has worked with special needs children through many organizations. He has been involved with the Best Buddies program in both high school and college.
He attended his first Ball State University Dance Marathon in February, and that’s where he met Mickey Deputy.
Mickey’s journey
Mickey Deputy is a senior at Franklin Community High School. The singing, dancing and pageant-loving girl is wildly popular on Ball State’s campus for her eight-straight BSUDM appearances.
Every year, students bombard Mickey for pictures and hugs after she shares her story. She has Down syndrome and has been a Riley kid since she was a baby.
At 10 months old, Mickey was brought to Riley Hospital to fix three holes in her heart. At 7 years old, she was sent to Riley after being diagnosed with Leukemia. After 26 months of primarily outpatient treatment, Mickey was cancer-free.
“They treat the patients but they also treat the whole family,” Mickey said.
Mickey is passionate about Dance Marathon. Her family travels around Indiana to various colleges and high schools sharing their Riley story.
“I love Dance Marathon because Dance Marathon is my life,” Mickey said.
Eighteen-year-old Mickey Deputy loves the spotlight. She is an avid pageant contestant and travels around the country competing. Her pageant roots began with the Miss Amazing Pageant — a pageant specifically for girls with disabilities — which she’s won twice.
Mickey never knew the tall, muscular basketball player who donated $5 to Riley Hospital for Children for her to give him a makeover would become a close friend and fellow advocate for those with disabilities.
A new friendship
With Moses standing at 6-foot-9 and Mickey topping out at 4-foot-11, the two could not appear more different. But put them together, and they bond like two friends who have known each other for years.
“The two of them cannot be more opposite when you look at them together,” Jenny said. “They could not be more opposite, and yet they get along, and it’s just amazing to see them together.”
When Moses introduced himself to Mickey at the Dance Marathon “Riley Kid Makeover” booth, she gave him an all-inclusive makeover, including pink highlights. After posting an Instagram photo of the two at Dance Marathon, Moses coincidentally ran into Mickey’s aunt, who said she saw the picture of them.
Moses asked to see Mickey again, and the two have been inseparable ever since.
“We normally don’t jump into a friendship like this, where it was because she had her picture taken with someone at the Dance Marathon, because that happens all the time,” Jenny said. “But there’s just something about him very genuine.”
Despite living in different cities, Moses and Mickey support each other whenever they can. Mickey has come to Moses’ basketball games, and he has supported her at pageants. Moses recently attended the Miss Hoosier Heartland Pageant March 6.
“He’s very humble,” Jenny said. “You can just tell by the way he talks and carries himself. He doesn’t act like he’s a big man on campus.”
Since Moses’ freshman basketball season has ended, he’s had additional time to spend with Mickey. Mickey competed in her final pageant of the season in The Sweeps Pageant April 2.
Moses was in the audience sporting his “Team Mickey” shirt and cheering her on. Mickey won the Congeniality Spirit Award.
“I actually teared up, I was so proud of her,” Moses said.
Dynamic Duo
Moses and Mickey may be different, but the two share the same goal of changing the stigma that comes along with those who have a disability.
“Every time I see somebody with a special ability, I don’t call them disabilities,” Mickey said. “I call them special abilities.”
Mickey graduates high school in May. One day, she hopes to bring the Miss Amazing Pageant to every state. She also hopes to start a Best Buddies program in Nicaragua, where she once went on a mission trip.
Fresh off Ball State’s 21-win season, Moses has high hopes for his basketball and educational future. He plans on becoming a special education teacher for elementary-aged children.
“I’m in a great position as far as being a basketball player and doing the stuff I do,” Moses said. “I feel like I’ve raised a lot of awareness for people with disabilities.”
Moses continues to speak to groups about the Best Buddies program. He also hopes to someday open up a Down syndrome clinic.
“He’s very compassionate and obviously very invested in the special needs community and wanting to help and empower those with special needs,” Jenny said.
Mickey and Moses may not have known each other for long, but the pair shares a special bond.
Not just in friendship, but also the desire to make the world a better place.
“Seeing that I really touch Mickey and all of their hearts and make them happy, that’s something that makes me happy,” Moses said. “They’ve really changed my life.”
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