Parade celebrates mom's 'special gift'; Sheriff's Office, others help create day to remember

Oct. 16--Briana Parker lost her mother at the tender age of 4.

She knows how much it means to shower her own children with the love and care they deserve.

Daughter Arie'yanna Johnson is autistic and has faced many obstacles in her young life. So when she reached the age of 10 on Oct. 8, her mother was determined to make her day as special as it could be.

"As her birthday came closer, I said, 'Lord, what could I do this year to make it special?' I have done the party bus. Every year I did large parties for her. I said, 'Well, COVID is going on, but I want to do something she can remember,'" Parker said.

So she organized a big, drive-through birthday parade through her Laurel Hill neighborhood for Arie'yanna, complete with family, friends, neighbors and vehicles from the Orangeburg County Sheriff's Office.

"It was just overwhelming. To me, it was more than what anybody could see. I can't explain it, but it was something magical in my eyes. The sheriff's office came in the cars and trucks and had their sirens going. They got out and gave Arie'yanna a basket. It really was heartfelt," Parker said.

The 10-year-old was showered with balloons on her big day.

"When I reached out to family and friends, I actually told them, 'Bring a balloon. I don't want a gift.' Gifts can be replaced, but it's the time that people give that will last longer than any amount of money or anything," Parker said. She also invited the parents of other special needs children to join the birthday parade with their children.

"This is for all of them. It's not just for Arie'yanna. My heart is big like that. When it comes to her, she's a special gift. A lot of people look at her, but they don't realize that she's changed me in a lot of ways," Parker said. She also gave her daughter the opportunity to go horseback riding in Sumter on the Saturday following her parade, which was held Oct. 10.

"I tell everybody to give your kids something that's out of the norm. I cherish everything with her," Parker said.

Contact the writer: dgleaton@timesanddemocrat.com or 803-533-5534. Follow "Good News with Gleaton" on Twitter at @DionneTandD

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