The kind story happened a few days ago at Buffalo Creek School in New York and was reported by Today and The Washington Post. The main characters are Romello Early and Melvin Anderson, who are in 7th grade and are very close friends.
A few weeks after the start of the new school year, Romello noticed that his friend, Melvin, was being bullied by his classmates because his sneakers were too old. They even laughed at Melvin and made hurtful comments.
Romello told a reporter for The Washington Post that she couldn't stand to see her friend being bullied. Because of the fact that she was bullied and laughed at for her short stature, she immediately understood Melvin's mood.
Romello decided to call his mother after school. And in tears she told her mother that she was tired of seeing this terrible situation, she couldn't bear to see Melvin being laughed at. "I really need to talk to you because my friend is being bullied and I'm tired of it," Romello told her mother. And in an act of generosity, Romello asked his mother to use his personal money and less money to buy him a Christmas present, to use the money to buy Melvin a new pair of sneakers.
Romello's mother told The Washington Post : “I am very confused, because most children are not willing to give something to others; Most children only care about themselves. Just looking at Romello's age, but acting like an adult, moves me beyond words."
After getting her mother's permission to buy shoes for her friends, Romello went to bed earlier than usual so that she could wake up early the next morning and get to school a little earlier. Romello said doing this so she can give the shoes to friends, avoiding prying eyes.
Melvin later told The Washington Post : “I was completely shocked. I feel very happy and very surprised.”
However, the giving and receiving of gifts from the two young people along with friendly gestures did not pass the eyes of Mr. Bryant Brown, Dean of the School of Culture. Immediately after receiving the shoes from Romello, Melvin was called into the office by Mr. Bryant Brown and cordially asked him about the box he was holding in his hand. Melvin honestly opened the box and said this was a new pair of sneakers and explained that she had just received it from her friend Romello. The Dean of the Faculty of Culture was very moved when he heard this fact.
Later, Romello was also called in by the teacher and she explained that she bought the shoes with pocket money from her parents. To capture this touching moment, teacher Bryant Brown took a picture of the two boys with new shoes.
Bryant Brown also asked their parents' permission to share the picture on Facebook with the captions: “Romello, my student told me he was tired of seeing his classmates mocking his old shoes. Melvin. Romello used his personal money to buy shoes for his friend. This is what I have witnessed. Let's help each other."
The post quickly went viral on Facebook and garnered more than 22,000 likes, 19,000 shares, and received over 2,200 comments. Mr. Brown was surprised to see the post getting so much attention and said it was a gesture he had never seen before. He added that he had read and watched acts of kindness on YouTube all over the world, but at Buffalo Creek School this was the first time he had seen it with his own eyes.
Romello told The Woshington Post: “I think we should always treat others the way we want to be treated. I have a lot of things, so I think, today I need to give good to others.” What Romello did was said by Jesus in the Gospel: "Whatever you want others to do to you, do also to others" (Mt 7:12).
Buffalo Creek School, Mr. Brown and the parents were all touched by Romello and Melvin's touching story. A local organization decided to reward the couple with tickets to the Buffalo Bills game. In addition, the kind story has been disseminated in the media as an invitation for everyone to live the spirit of sharing with the less fortunate, especially during this Christmas Season.
