Colonie Mom Invites All to Bday 'Drive-By' for Miracle Daughter

"We don't know how many of these parties we're going to have for Eva"

Angie Scotto from Colonie is hoping that the surprise birthday drive-by parade she's planning for her daughter Eva will bring some much-needed smiles to a young girl who has endured so much. As she gets set to turn 14, it's a miracle that Eva is still here as her mom says she's already outlived the original doctor diagnosis and every day is a blessing

Eva, 13, has a rare disorder called Mitochondrial Disease that affects her autonomic nervous system. The disease - sadly with no known cure - has debilitated this young girl's body in too many ways to count.

Photo: Angie Scotto

The invitation goes out, and it goes viral

A few weeks ago, the West Colonie mom posted a message on Nextdoor, a hyper-local neighborhood app useful for finding things for sale, tips, and other information. The message she wrote was about a drive-by birthday party in the works for her daughter on Saturday, December 4th.

Eva's mom said her daughter doesn't use social media and has no real tangible way of knowing that plans for a bday drive-by exist, so she asked the community if they wanted to be a part of this "secret."

What started off as a relatively small "community ask" has grown into something much larger, and with less than a few weeks until the big day, Angie is preparing for something she could have never imagined: Word of the bday drive-by is spreading quickly, and not just here in the Capital Region.

"I've had people from as far away as Texas asking how they can get involved," Angie said.

Local first responders get involved

With help from the Town of Colonie Police and the Midway Fire Department, Angie's not too worried about the growing size of the bday party drive-by, as police and fire escorts will help with crowd control and flow of traffic.

In addition to being blind, the disease has weakened Eva's muscles, her hearing, liver, kidney and so much more. Eva, according to her mom, has such debilitating anxiety, that she rarely leaves the house, but Angie is confident that when she hears the sirens, sees the lights, and the rows of cars waiting to celebrate her, she'll have no issues basking in the birthday glow.

It's tough to predict what kinds of positive effects something like this could have on a young girl who doesn't have many friends and only a few relatives in the area. "Who knows," Angie explained, "she might even feel comfortable enough to want to leave the house."

While the long-term impact of a fun, positive, community event like the one planned for Eva on December 4th can't be measured, it's less about the future effects, and more about the here and now.

"We don't know how many of these parties we're going to have for Eva," Angie said