When Only 1 Person RSVP'd to This Boy's Birthday, the Entire Local Football Team Saved the Day

When 9-year-old Christian sent out his birthday invitations, he didn't get the response most kids hope for — only one person RSVP'd. Christian, who turned 9 in June, had invited all of his classmates to the party, his mom, Lindsay Barrus Larsen, told ABC News. Only one girl had responded, however. "At that point, I was just so happy that the one girl had responded," Larsen told ABC News. "I knew with one other girl we would just make a great day of it."

As thrilled as Christian's mom was with the one girl having said yes, she couldn't help but be curious as to why. Her son has autism, and she wondered if that played a part. "The hardest thing, is I do understand. It can be uncomfortable to try to be a friend with someone who has had outbursts and cried in class," she wrote on Facebook. "It's hard when maybe you tried at the start of the year, and he kept wandering off in the middle of the game."

As Larsen was preparing for the party, she got a surprising message from a friend. The Nampa High School football coach and a few players were interested in coming too! After some hestitation, Larsen agreed, and came they did. Cheering his name, the players poured into his backyard and gave excited Christian a bunch of high-fives. It ended up being a great day for everyone involved, and such a beautiful turn of events. "The more that you socialize and interact with people who are different, it doesn't matter what the difference is, but you become more accepting and you start caring about the world around you more," Larsen said.