Seventeen-year-old Karrie Brown of Collinsville, Ill. had always dreamed of being a model, and after her mother's Facebook campaign went viral, the teen with Down syndrome got her chance to live her dream in a special photoshoot for Wet Seal, ABC News reports.
Every day, Sue Brown would post photos to the Facebook page, "Karrie Brown - Modelling the Future," of her daughter wearing outfits from junior's clothing brand Wet Seal's Plus line, in hopes of attracting the company's attention.
Supporters were quick to get on board and "like" the page and pictures of Karrie, and soon enough, Wet Seal caught on.
"People started texting and tweeting at Wet Seal and leaving voicemails for them that they should check out Karrie, that she wants to be a model," Sue Brown told Today.com. "On their website, they say they believe in diversity and inclusion, and it was just a perfect fit."
"She immediately caught our attention," Wet Seal's Yasmin Ezaby told ABC News. "We then asked our fans to get Karrie's Facebook page to 10k likes and we would give her the trip of a lifetime. She exceeded this goal in two days."
Wet Seal flew Karrie and her mother to Los Angeles for an all-expenses paid trip, including a Disneyland excursion. The news was quite exciting and shocking for Sue.
"She was really excited," Sue Brown said to ABC News of her daughter's reaction. "She was excited about getting her picture taken at Wet Seal and really excited about Disneyland but I think one of the most exciting things for her was getting to see her sister in LA, too."
Though Wet Seal runs an annual model search competition, this is the first time they have created a special challenge for one lucky teen.
Karrie shot for Wet Seal on Aug. 30, and Ezaby said she was "full of energy," asking for "Justin Bieber so she could sing and dance while shooting."
"It was loads of fun," said Ezaby. "She was a natural in front of the camera."
In the coming weeks, Karrie Brown's photoshoot will be released on Wet Seal's official website. Now that she's got modeling under her belt, Sue Brown hopes to help her daughter accomplish her next goal: dancing on television with Ellen DeGeneres.
"On some days [Karrie] says she wants to model more clothes for Wet Seal," Sue told Today.com. "Other times, she wants to be a librarian."
Now Karrie and Sue are focused on their new nonprofit, Karried Away, dedicated to helping people with disabilities find work they enjoy.
Click here to see additional photos from Karrie Brown's shoot with Wet Seal.
