Christmas comes early for three-year-old Nova Scotia boy

Three-year-old Wesley Lynch wants friends for Christmas this year.

Wesley’s mother, Amy Wells, made a post on Facebook after her son told her he was feeling lonely and had no friends. She asked people to send her son mail so he can make some new friends over the holidays.

Since Wesley is so young, Wells said he doesn’t know what life is like outside of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“It’s sad because I don’t think we realize how much COVID affects our kids,” said Wells.

She is extra cautious when she takes Wesley out in public because of the pandemic. She said it’s hard for him to meet friends his age because they live in a small community in Hants County, N.S., and most play centres are still closed.

Wells was surprised by the number of people that reached out to her, offering to send Wesley a card. About 20 people from Nova Scotia, surrounding provinces and even someone from the U.S. sent cards to Wesley.

“I told him, ‘You have mail coming.’ And he said, ‘Mom, can we go check the mail today?’ He’s already waiting,” said Wells.

Paula Simpson-Frost, from Cape Breton Island, is one of the people who sent Wesley a letter. She said she was very touched by Wells’ post, and it made her think of her daughter when she was younger.

“When she was small and his age, she loved to get mail more than anything in the world,” said Simpson-Frost.

Without hesitation, Simpson-Frost immediately reached out to Wells to send a Christmas card.

“I hope he’ll always remember this Christmas as something that’s very special when we’re in a time of such uncertainty,” said Simpson-Frost.

An elementary school teacher from Georgia, U.S. also saw Wells’ post and reached out to send Wesley some mail. Karen Edwards Pothier has been a school teacher for 30 years and said she’s always had a special place in her heart for young children.

“I know what it’s like to be a lonely child,” said Edwards Pothier.

“It just touched my heart that she would reach out to strangers, asking for something sent by mail to her little boy. And I thought, ‘How exciting would it be for him to have something from a different country?’”

Wesley received his first Christmas card on Wednesday and told his mom he’s really excited for the rest of his cards to arrive.