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All season long, we're surprising 13 loyal fans in honor of our 13th season!
First, we surprised a viewer named Lomalouise with a trip to Italy. Then, we arranged for NASCAR superfan Justin to meet Dale Earnhardt, Jr.
And most recently, we surprised a Rachael superfan named Debbie with an in-studio feast and a night out in NYC!
Next up is soon-to-be 22-year-old Bailey from Tennessee. (And fair warning — you might need tissues for this one.)
One year ago, Bailey posted a tweet that changed her life, and it all started with her dad, Mike.
"I was a complete daddy's girl," Bailey tells us. "He was literally my best friend."
Mike was hilariously sarcastic, she says, he coached Bailey in basketball from age 4 to 16 and he was a huge fan of our Rach. In fact, Bailey says they would always watch our show together — and he even had a crush on Rach!
"When I was 16," Bailey says, "my dad got diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and a few months after the diagnosis, my father passed away."
"I cried, I was numb, but it was kind of like a weight lifted off my shoulder in a way," she goes on, "because I knew he was no longer in pain and in a better place, really."
Bailey turned 17 three months later, and to her surprise, she received a delivery of flowers — from her father.
"It had a little card in the bouquet," she tells us, "and I opened it up and it said, 'You will receive these until your 21st birthday. I love you. Dad."
It gave her chills at the time — and we're right there with her hearing about it now.
"It meant everything to me that he loved me that much to pre-plan not every milestone," Bailey says, "but a lot of milestones for me."
Bailey received her final bouquet on her 21st birthday, and she says it was completely different from the rest.
"It was big — it was his cancer color, actually, deep purple — and it was an actual handwritten letter," she explains, "which was really awesome."
(Watch the video above to hear the sweet words Mike wrote.)
She had posted all of the bouquets on social media every year, but this particular post went viral — garnering more than 330,000 retweets and more than 1.4 million likes just a day later.
"My phone was frozen," Bailey says of all the messages she received from people who had also recently lost loved ones. "It made me feel really good that I could help somebody with my story."
Now, with Bailey's 22nd birthday approaching, we had to step in — and not just for this birthday, but for every one of Bailey's future birthdays.
So, with help from The Bouqs Co., we not only gifted Bailey with a bouquet of flowers for her 22nd birthday, but we'll be sending her one every year for the rest of her life.
Here's to many, many more, Bailey! ❤️