Kaylee Halko

Her parents could have never imagined that their child born with this very rare disease would be able to live even a normal life. But Kaylee’s meteoric rise to stardom at a tender age has proved them wrong. When in school, her friends were quite supportive of her and created social media accounts in her name. It made her quite popular but not as widely.

She first caught the public’s eye when she appeared on a show called 20/20. That laid the foundation for her to become known among the public. Slowly, her social media following started rising.

Soon after, Kaylee decided to launch her musical career. She was self aware of the fact that the big music labels might not resonate along with her. So she created an account on Musical.ly. This turned out to be a stepping stone in her life. As her popularity rapidly rose, she became one of the most sought after teen idols. She gained more than 2.5 million fans on musical.ly and a 100 million hearts. Based on the website standards, this is a massive success. The celebrity status followed and people started stopping her on the streets for selfies and autographs.

Since then, she has appeared in WTOL 11 as a guest. She became a real darling in the eyes of public when she started raising fund for The Annual Kaylee’s course, an initiative to make the world a better place for the less fortunate. Her book titled ‘Old before My Time’ is a biographical telling of her story and has been selling in good numbers.

When Timothy George Halko and Marla Lynn Halko welcomed a baby girl in their family, their happiness was beyond any description. Kaylee’s first cries were heard in an Ohio hospital on 21st July 2003.

Although she came across like a normal child initially, she started showing signs of fast ageing. The doctors underwent tests and it turned out that she was suffering from a rare disease known as Progeria, which apparently makes the patients age ten times faster than normal. The family was broken with this revelation but resolved that she would lead a normal life for as long as she can. The patients suffering from the disease usually have 13 years to live.

At school, Kaylee had her share of bullying and name calling. But she did find some supportive friends who liked her for who she was. Kaylee showed an inclination towards dancing and fine arts from an early stage.

While growing up in suburban Ohio with three brothers, Kaylee exhibited extraordinary strength and tolerance from an early age. Despite her bullying, she insisted on taking bus to school every day.

Some hateful students went two steps ahead and created hate pages in her name on the social media platforms. When it became out of hand, Kaylee changed her school. But she never quite let this bullying and constant hate to take a blow to her heart and kept her head cool and eyes full of dreams.