Buffalo middle-schooler who saw classmate getting bullied for his old shoes buys him new ones
BUFFALO, NEW YORK: A Buffalo teen has been going viral on social media for showing an act of kindness towards his classmate by gifting him a new pair of expensive shoes after seeing him being bullied for his old shoes.
The incident happened when Romello “Mello” Early, a seventh grader at Buffalo Creek Academy Charter School, noticed that his friend Melvin Anderson had been receiving brutal comments from their classmates over the old sneakers he was wearing. The comments shattered Mello’s heart and made him take a stand for his friend.
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Upset over his friend’s situation, Mello called his mother crying after school. His mother, Anita James, told TODAY that when she had asked him what happened, he told her, “I just really need to talk to you because my friend is getting bullied and I’m tired of it.” James tried to calm him down but Mello was not very happy with her consolation. Later that day, he came up with a heart-warming idea and asked his mother if they could go to the shoe store to find a pair of new sneakers that he can give to Melvin. The 12-year-old offered up his allowance money to buy the new pair and even suggested that one of his Christmas presents could get taken away so he could purchase a new pair of shoes for his friend instead.
Excited to see a twinkling smile on Melvin’s face, Mello said he went to sleep early that night so he could wake up early and give him the shoes. Mello, the next day gave Melvin the new pair of sneakers with his whole heart. The kind gesture made Melvin emotional but also made him extremely happy. Shortly after, Melvin was called to the classroom of Bryant Brown Jr., Dean of Culture at Buffalo Creek Academy. Brown said he was surprised to see Melvin walking in with the brand-new pair of Nike sneakers. When he asked Melvin who gave him these expensive sneakers, he revealed that his friend Mello has bought them for him. “I said ‘Call Mello’ and Mello came and explained to me that he bought them with his allowance,” Brown said.
Brown said he was completely moved by Mello’s gesture and decided to take picture of the duo with Melvin holding the pair of sneakers to exhibit the heart-melting moment. The dean then shared the picture on his Facebook with a caption reading “My student Melo (sic) told me he was tired of other students picking on Melvin about his shoes. Melo used his allowance and bought Melvin some shoes. This is what I live for 💯 💯 be that helping hand.” The post instantly went viral on the social media platform and garnered more than 20,000 likes, 16,000 shares, and 2,000 comments, in just a few days. The story also caught the attention of Dakarai Singletary, the founder of the local organization Candles in the S.U.N., who has promised to take the duo to a Buffalo Bills game in November to celebrate the act of friendship.
Melvin’s father Wesley Anderson, who is completely blown away by the response that the story was getting, said he just prays that situation between Melvin and Mello is “contagious.” “Just treat everybody with kindness instead of trying to ridicule the other child, because they never know what their parents are going through — a financial situation, mental situation, or whatever the case may be,” he said. “I just hope that that spreads around. I don’t hope everybody buys everybody a pair of sneakers, but instead of being mean and telling jokes, just console one another. Lift everybody up.”