Manchester Arena Survivor Gets Invite To Royal Wedding
LONDON (CBSNewYork) – In less than five weeks Britain's Prince Harry will marry American Meghan Markle.
Among their invited guests will be an English schoolgirl who survived the Manchester Arena suicide bombing last year.
Amelia Thompson, 12, was shocked when a royal wedding invitation arrived with her name on it.
"I didn't know what to say! I was speechless. I was just like, 'is someone messing with me,'" she said.
Amelia's mom nominated her daughter for the invite after Prince Harry and Markle announced they'd include more than 26-hundred members of the public to share in their May 19th wedding on the grounds of Windsor Castle.
Amelia was attending the Ariana Grande concert last May when a terrorist attacked the Manchester Arena, killing 22 people. She was left with damaged vocal cords from screaming at the horror of what she witnessed.
"Since Manchester, it's been really hard," said Amelia's mom Lisa Newton.
Counseling has helped and so has the palace "pick-me-up". Through it all, Amelia has become close with other survivors and victims' families.
She asked the grandmother of 15-year-old Olivia Campbell-Hardy – who died in the attack – to be her plus one for the wedding.
"She's still struggling so it's an honor for us to let her go and experience it with Amelia. I'll see the pictures," Newton said with a laugh.
Amelia says she's excited to buy a "posh" outfit for the big day and to be a part of a story with a happily ever after
President Donald Trump and former President Barack Obama are not on the guest list. Prince Harry and Markle decided to invite friends and colleagues, rather than prime ministers and politicians.