Vicki Gould from Glace Bay, N.S., has been through her share of challenges in life.
Born with Down syndrome, celiac disease and having had open-heart surgery at the age of five months, the 21-year-old woman is not without her struggles – but she's not without joy, either.
Vicki’s mother, Lori Gould, says her daughter is mostly non-verbal, but when she hears a song by her idol, country music star Johnny Reid, she belts out the words.
"She's a huge Johnny Reid fan – huge,” says Gould. “From the first time she heard Johnny sing, she fell right in love with him."
Gould says her daughter will listen to the country star for hours on end and admits she has a bit of a crush on him too. However, she's never met or seen him in concert, but she knows every song – and the music speaks to her soul.
"She just hollers his name. She says, 'Johnny Reid!'" says Gould.
It just so happens Reid is playing a show in Cape Breton on Nov. 21 at Sydney’s Centre 200 – something Gould says would be a great opportunity for her daughter to experience.
“She would love it,” says Gould. “She would be up on that floor dancing the whole night.”
Gould says they don't have tickets yet; and while she'll try her best, she's not sure she'll be able to get them. If she does, she says seeing Reid perform live would mean more than anything to her daughter – while meeting him would take the night to a whole new level.
“She would love it,” says Gould. “She'd probably wrap her arms around him and hug him.”
Meanwhile, Gould and her daughter await the opportunity to get their hands on a pair of Johnny Reid tickets.
