John Cena is going viral this weekend for an unbelievable good deed. Cena traveled to Amsterdam to meet with Misha, a teenager with Down’s Syndrome who had to flee his home in Ukraine this year due to the Russian invasion. Many fans are praising Cena for this straightforward yet incredible display of kindness.
Misha and his family lived in Mariupol, but fled when their home was destroyed, according to a report by TMZ. Misha was particularly distressed by the transition, and his non-verbal Down’s Syndrome did not make things any easier. His mother tried to soothe him through the process by saying that they were on their way to meet his favorite wrestler, Cena, so the trip would all be worth it. Cena somehow heard about this and went to Europe to meet the family, making Misha’s mother’s white lie a reality.
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Misha and his family are staying somewhere outside of Amsterdam, Netherlands, and Cenam met up with them on Sunday, June 5. A video published by the WWE shows the whole family clearly caught off guard, and Misha shaking hands with his lifelong hero. Cena hugged the entire family and then hung out to chat with this die-hard fan.
“When I read about Misha’s story, it reached out to me – not just Misha’s story, but Misha’s mom as well,” Cena explained in the video. “Having three days off of work right at the time when I read this story, and being an hour away by air, it turned immediately into: ‘we’re going.’ And that means spending an afternoon building blocks and eating cake. That’s a special afternoon when it comes to the new friends I was able to make.”
As a die-hard fan Misha already owned all kinds of Cena memorabilia, but Cena brought him some new gifts as well, including some new gear and a championship belt. Misha responded well, practicing Cena’s signature gestures from the ring and challenging the wrestler to feel his muscle.
The Russian invasion of Ukraine continues at the time of this writing, and casualties and losses are not being reported definitively. The invasion has received widespread condemnation from leaders and agencies around the world, but the Russian government has refused to comply with the commands of international governing bodies. At the time of this writing, Russia has occupied much of the eastern side of Ukraine including many of its sea ports.
