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Culture February 27, 2017
A group of nurses held a Hokey Pokey dance party to cheer up a sick, three-year-old girl. Things are about to get emotional.
The young girl, Madison Austin, was born with rare birth defect Neuronal Migration Disorder, which affects brain and muscle development and has required her to use a tracheostomy tube to breathe.
She was hospitalized earlier this month after her oxygen levels dropped severely and she began suffering from seizures. Madison’s mother, Krista Austin, told TODAY Parents that it could take “months for her lungs to get back to normal,” after a diagnosis of the flu, rhinovirus and three different infections.
Madison had fallen in love with the Hokey Pokey after stumbling upon it on her mother’s iPad. So nurses at HSHS St. John’s Hospital in Springfield, Illinois agreed it could be the perfect way to cheer her up during a particularly long stay in the hospital.
Throughout the video Madison really does seem uplifted by the performance, as she excitedly claps along and at one point covers her mouth and throws her head back in laughter. A registered nurse at the hospital told TODAY Parents that it certainly seemed to improve Madison’s mood. “She lit up just being on the bed, bouncing and smiling,” she said.
Krista’s video of the dance party has been viewed over 130k times, and has more than 2k likes. It has even caught the attention of EllenNation, which Krista hopes will earn her daughter a meeting with Ellen DeGeneres herself.
She shared an adorable photo of Madison holding a sign asking Ellen to join her for her Hokey Pokey hospital dance party, and has since asked fans to vote for Madison’s video on EllenNation.com. “She really is a star!” she posted.
Ellen DeGeneres has always said that she believes in the power of dance, so maybe the video will catch her attention after all. Pulling for you, Madison!
