HANCOCK -- Eating lunch together is a daily routine for Alex, Luke, Zach, and Devin. They have known Zach Lanctot since sixth grade, and they go out of their way to treat him like one of the guys.
Zach is enrolled in special education courses, but he has never been treated differently by his group of friends.
“We don’t really see him as a different person at all; we sort of just saw him as a normal person, just like everyday life, and we just invited him over as one of us,” said Luke Paul.
The group says they enjoy spending time with Zach, and his laugh is contagious.
“Everyday he makes you smile some way or another. He makes you laugh. Even when we’re having a bad day, he’ll cheer you up,” said Devin Kero.
After lunch, the group heads over to the gym for a quick game of basketball.
“I like to come to school because my buddies are here,” said Zach Lanctot.
Maren Rouleau has been Zach's teacher for the past seven years and says Zach has a different class schedule, so he doesn’t get a lot of time to interact with his pals, but the time he spends with them shows everyone the true meaning of friendship.
Not only has their friendship earned these four seniors the Make a Difference award from their high school, they are serving as an inspiration.
“These boys don’t understand how big of a deal this is…just because they’re being nice. They think that they’re being nice, but what’s happening is that these boys are doing such a good thing with Zach that it’s trickling down with kids throughout the school,” said Hancock High School teacher Maren Rouleau.
Even after graduation, they all plan on keeping in touch with Zach because a bond like this will last a lifetime.
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