Bullied Teen Gets Princess-Worthy Photo Shoot Thanks to Community's Support

— -- One teen’s touching story pulled on the heartstrings of so many people in her Turlock, California, community that they rallied together to give her a magical makeover--turning her into a princess for a day complete with her own glamorous photo shoot.

Breanna Mendoza, 14, has Goldenhar Syndrome, a congenital birth defect that causes her to have a facial deformity. She has been so horrifically bullied since a young age that she’s even considered taking her own life.

"I was in second or first grade and I thought about just going into the street and just going in front of a bus," Breanna told ABC affiliate KXTV. "See what happens when you bully [people] to such a point? I want to prove to people that this is wrong and it does hurt."

Once viewers in her area heard her story, they jumped into action.

“I watched that and thought, ‘Oh my gosh,’” said photographer Heather Marshall. “I reached out to Steffanie Frank who has her station in a hair salon right around the corner from Blush Makeup and Beauty Lounge, so I thought that would be perfect since they’re right next to each other.”

The ladies jumped at the chance to help give Mendoza a very special day, which only left one thing for Marshall to do—reach out to Mendoza and her mom, Wendy, on Facebook.

“I said, ‘I saw your story and I just wanted to let you know if you would like to come and have a photo shoot, I have friends that would help do hair and makeup.’”

Marshall had one big concern, though.

“I didn’t want her to think that the hair and makeup being done meant that she’s not already pretty,” she explained. “That was a concern I had--that she’d think the hair and makeup was what made her pretty. Makeup doesn’t make you pretty, but it might help make her feel pretty.”

And it certainly did.

"I'm like speechless right now," Mendoza said as she stared at her fancy, freshly curled hairstyle. "Oh my God, I love this."

Mendoza couldn’t keep the smile off her face as she was getting pampered, something that especially warmed her mother’s heart.

“After everything that’s been going on, it’s so good to see her smiling and positive and just being a happy human being again,” Wendy, Breanna's mom, said.

Her daughter is even starting at a brand new school on Friday that’s already had an informal get-together to give Mendoza’s new classmates an opportunity to introduce themselves and welcome her with open arms before she even arrives.

“She’s positive again and just so happy about the future,” said Wendy.

What started as a beautiful day filled with princess-worthy pampering and a personalized glam squad has now helped Mendoza’s entire outlook. For Marshall, however, the simple act of kindness was nothing to be commended.

“It’s not amazing that we gave her a couple hours of our time,” she explained. “I don’t want people to think that this is so out of the norm. This is just what you should do for people. It only took an afternoon of our time, but to her, it meant the world.”

After the magical day was complete, Marshall said, “She gave me a huge hug and told me, ‘Thank you so much. You made me feel pretty for the first time.’”

Marshall hopes that this is a lesson for anyone dealing with or witnessing bullying happening around them.

“I just want encourage parents to sit down and talk with their kids about what goes on at school,” she said. “Seeing someone be a bully, or if they’re bullied themselves, I just want to encourage a lot of other parents to continue to talk to their kids about the Golden Rule. Just treat people the way you want to be treated. If only more people went just a little bit out of their way to help people feel special, there would be a lot more happiness going around.”