PEOPLE has an exclusive look at the moving video message Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson sent students with disabilities as part of the P.A.C.T.S. program
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson just gave a group of Ohio students the thrill of a lifetime.
PEOPLE has an exclusive first look at the 50-year-old actor’s video message to a group of over 400 students who are part of the state’s Parma City School District P.A.C.T.S. program.
According to its official website, P.A.C.T.S. (which stands for Parma Area Center for Transition Services) “is a dynamic employment and life skill training program for students with multiple disabilities,” with a goal “to promote independence in the home, community and integrated employment setting.”
During this year’s recent P.A.C.T.S. luau event — which was unable to be held for the last two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic — a surprise video message from Johnson was screened for all the students attending at Parma Senior High School.
“This message goes out to all of my friends — all the P.A.C.T.S. students at Parma High School,” the Jungle Cruise actor began. “Guys, I want to thank you so much for the amazing invitation that you guys sent me to come to the luau 2022, the comeback! Thank you guys so much. I saw the video [you made to invite me with] — I know that you guys were trying really hard, and I loved it. I loved the video. I loved everybody’s performances. … You are so cool and very talented.”
While Johnson couldn’t be there in person, “I am there in spirit, I’m there in love, and I wanna say thank you guys so much for the invite,” he addressed the students. “I want you guys to have the best time. I know that you guys have been raising funds for this amazing fundraiser all year long, and I wish you the best of luck.”
“I also want to take a moment to shout out all the incredible student peers, the volunteers from student council and the National Honor Society,” he added, joking, “And why the National Honor Society is so appropriate right now is because I, yours truly, was once never part of the National Honor Society. Because you guys are way smarter than I am.”
The Moana voice actor also said that “the best part of all the information that I heard about you guys, the best part, is that all of you students have the most gigantic hearts.”
“And that means something to me — that you have the biggest hearts in the world. It shows — I can tell, and I can feel it all the way here,” he said.
Johnson concluded his message, “I love you guys. Have an amazing event. And before I go, I wanna shout out all the teachers and all the volunteers for making this happen, especially Katie, Erin and Marie.”
The sweet video came after, back in February, the school district shared a clip of P.A.C.T.S. students recreating some of Johnson’s most iconic roles, requesting his presence at the upcoming luau.
Special-education teacher Katie Vento, who works with students in the P.A.C.T.S. program, says the luau was started 15 years ago and serves as “a way for our students to come celebrate their accomplishments over the year and to kick off summer.”
Wanting to take their 2022 event “to the next level,” the students created the video in the hopes that Johnson would attend the luau.
According to Vento, “Dwayne was so moved by this video and the personal story of these students that while he wasn’t able to attend in person due to his production schedule, he knew he wanted to do something special.”
Following the event, the actor personally gifted an outfit from his Project Rock collection with Under Armour, and also coordinated with his friends at Microsoft to give the new Xbox console with the special adaptive controllers, plus unlimited games for one year for the students.
Johnson also threw the students a special pizza party.
To learn more about P.A.C.T.S., visit parmacityschools.org.
[via]
