MENTOR, Ohio — Mary McMahon, a 12-year-old student at Shore Middle School in Mentor, and her family are preparing for a once-in-a-lifetime experience at Super Bowl LIX after she won a national contest to spread kindness.
This all came after Mary's music class at Mentor’s Shore Middle School was interrupted on Friday to welcome Stuart Musynski, the CEO and Co-Founder of Values-in-Action Foundation.
The Values-in-Action Foundation partnered with the NFL Foundation and the Pro Football Hall of Fame to host the ‘Kickoff for Kindness’ video contest.
The foundation said thousands of students from more than 650 schools nationwide sent a video motivating others to be kind.
However, the foundation said there could only be one winner, and the prize was given to Mary.
“Wouldn’t you know that the grand prize winner is right here in Mentor at Shore Middle School and that’s Mary McMahon so let’s give her a round of applause,” said Musynski.
Now, here’s the kicker.
“Mary and her family are going to the Superbowl,” Musynski said.
The surprise is something that caught Mary completely off guard after being announced as the winner and then winning the big prize.
“I had no idea. It’s just really surprising, and I’m so excited,” Mary said.
Mary’s mom, Jamie, said she was shocked, but more importantly, she’s proud of her 12-year-old daughter for taking the initiative to make a difference.
“I didn’t know how many kids were going to do it, and she was excited like, 'Oh, I can get a $500 shopping spree to like Lululemon.' I did not ever dream that it would be Superbowl tickets,” Jamie said.
This group uses its influence to empower students and adults to build communities of kindness, caring and respect through programs and initiatives like Kindland, which has been spreading positivity and kindness for 30 years.
“We love the Mentor schools. We’ve had a 20-year relationship here, and we love what your schools are doing and what you guys do and how responsive you are to the concept of kindness,” Musynski said.
Mary said she is rooting for the Chiefs to win and hopes to spot Taylor Swift while there.
