“She Lost Her Mom to Cancer in the Morning — That Night, Another Girl Gave Her the Homecoming Crown”
On the morning of September 24, 2021, A.J. Walters — a beloved school secretary at Forrest County Agricultural High School in Mississippi — lost her long battle with cancer.That same evening, her daughter Brittany was scheduled to walk the homecoming field as a senior nominee for queen. A.J. had made her family promise they would still attend.
She had never missed a single important moment in Brittany’s life, and she wasn’t about to let cancer take this one from her either.So Brittany went. Just hours after losing her mother, she walked arm in arm with her father across the field.When the homecoming queen was announced, it was Nyla Covington. But before accepting the crown, Nyla quietly approached the school officials and asked for permission to do something special.
Then she walked straight over to Brittany, who was standing beside her grieving father. Nyla removed the crown from her own head and gently placed it on Brittany’s.Brittany had no idea it was coming.“All I could think about was my mom and how badly she wanted to be here,” Brittany later recalled. “The next thing I knew, Nyla walked up, hugged me, and then started taking off her crown.”When Brittany tried to step back, Nyla held firm.“No, come here. Get it. You’re your mom’s queen.
”There wasn’t a dry eye in the entire stadium.Brittany later said: “I can see my mom through Nyla. They have the same exact caring, giving spirit.”Nyla insisted that Brittany keep the crown. Permanently.Some people are crowned queens. Others are born one.
