Little City hosts virtual birthday party for separated twins

Paul and Payton were born one minute apart, so being separated on their 18th birthday was unthinkable.

Paul, a resident at Little City's Foglia Home, has no greater advocate or friend than his twin brother Payton, who wanted nothing more than to be together for their 18th birthday on April 2.

But because of COVID-19, they were unable to celebrate in person.

"Payton reached out to me directly, writing an extremely eloquent, emotionally charged account to be with his brother to celebrate their 18th birthday together," said Rich Bobby, Chief Program Officer of Children's Services.

"I assured him our team would do all we could to make their birthday together one of the most memorable."

And the Foglia team came through, hosting a party neither brother will ever forget. From decorating the house in Paul's favorite Mickey Mouse Clubhouse characters to recording Paul and his housemates making cupcakes for the occasion, the Foglia team was able to create a memorable video call for Payton and his family to celebrate with Paul.

While the Foglia team, including Chasity Anderson, Genie Cendana and Heather Hancock, went above and beyond to make the party happen, Cendana said it was really Payton who made sure everyone knew what would be needed to throw a perfect party for Paul.

"Payton is probably the biggest advocate I know for Paul, and just one of the biggest advocates I know in general," Cendana said. "He comes to visit Paul with or without their parents, gets his friends involved with Paul and comes every weekend to take him for ice cream or do something fun. It is that special twin relationship."

And as far as Payton is concerned, Cendana and the rest of the Little City staff are just as special for Paul.

Payton said Paul's three years at Little City have been a huge improvement from the previous agency he attended. He is more active and happy, and he can even see the improvement in communication and other life skills.

"They made our birthday feel real special and it meant a lot. It went amazingly well," Payton said. "They were all really easy to work with and did a great job. It's nice to know when I'm not there that Paul has people to step up and really care for him."

Still, nothing beats their special brotherly bond, and Payton said he plans on taking Paul to do his favorite activities of swimming and basketball and spend a night or two as a family as soon as they can.

And Little City would like to thank Apple Inc. and Diamond Assets LLC for their generous iPad donations that have allowed these virtual visits to be possible for residents and their families.