BRITAIN’S loneliest schoolboy can expect a special delivery this Christmas – in the form of 20,000 festive cards from around the world.
10-year-old Aron Anderson, from Da Skerries on Shetland, is the only pupil left at his school after older students moved on to Lerwick Academy earlier this year.
He has no children to play with at breaktimes, his best friends are a dog, ducks and a flock of sheep and the other kids only come home at weekends.
A kind-hearted Scot was so moved by his plight that they have rallied an online community to give the boy a Christmas he won’t forget.
And now thousands of people have agreed to send the youngster as many Christmas cards as they possibly can.
Ross McMahon, who posted the plea on Reddit over the weekend, wrote: “Last week, I was moved by the news story of ‘Britain’s loneliest schoolboy’.
“At the time, I said we should do something to make him feel less lonely. I thought it would be very nice if we all sent him some Christmas cards.
“I really want him to get a big massive smile on his face, so please, write a wee message in the card to show your support too!
“We have 20,000 subscribers on here and even if 1% of you send a card that’s 200 cards to a lonely boy to cheer his Christmas right up.
“I hope you do me proud and send some nice festive cheer.”
The post has attracted hundreds of comments, with some people from as far away as Canada and New Zealand agreeing to send a card.
Lonely
One subscriber asked: “Would a Hawaiian themed Christmas card in the place of a postcard be ok? What a sweet idea.”
Another wrote: “Michigan here. Sending one this week to make sure it gets there in time.”
One person added: “I’ll send him a card from Saudi Arabia!”
Speaking about the response, Ross said: “There are so few people living on the islands anymore, so it’s really easy to forget that it must surely get lonely there.
“Aron had brothers and sisters at the school, so it wasn’t so bad. But now that they’ve moved on to bigger and better things, he’s been left on his tod.
“It was a kind of spur-of-the-moment thing to decide to send him some cards. I thought it was a safe and cool way to send some festive cheer.
“When I phone up the school to let them know I was planning on doing it, they said they were sure it would put a smile on his face, and that’s what this time of year is all about.”
Happy
Aron’s mother Denise said: “This is going to be his first winter as the only pupil so it’s hard to tell how it will be for him.
“I do feel sorry for Aron being all by himself at the school – but he really is happy. Spending a lot of time with adults has made him quite grown-up, but he does enjoy trips to the mainland to meet other children.
“I just wish we could go back ten years. It would be lovely to have some more families here. And if any did decide to come, there is already a 10-year-old here for their children to play with.”
Anyone wishing to send Aron a card should address it to: Aron Anderson, Skerries School, Skerries, Shetland, ZE21 9AS
