World's 'loneliest schoolboy' to receive hundreds of cards from Redditors

Updated
Loneliest Schoolboy in Britain to Get Lots of Christmas Greetings
Loneliest Schoolboy in Britain to Get Lots of Christmas Greetings

If you've never heard of the small island of Out Skerries, you're not alone. The tiny Shetland isle, 386 miles north of Edinburgh, Scotland, has a wee population of 70 people.

And out of those 70 people, there is only one school-aged child. Meet Aron Anderson, Skerries Community School's sole pupil.

SEE ALSO: Lonely people's brains work differently than the brains of non-lonely people

The Telegraph reports that until recently, Aron had a number of classmates, including his brothers Ivan, 13, and Owen, 16, and his friends Ethan, 12 and Scott Arthur, 16. However, they have since left for secondary school on nearby Lerwick, a two-and-a-half hour boat ride away, returning only at weekends and for holidays, leaving Aron as the primary school's only student

Related: See sights and scenery around Scotland:



10-year-old Aron, who wants to be a fisherman like his father Ewan, 43, when he grows up, admitted that even he finds his new predicament strange on occasion. %shareLinks-quote="It is quite weird sometimes, not having anyone else at school. But I like this island. I can ride around and explore on my bike; in summer I can swim in the sea and jump off the pier." type="quote" author="Aron Anderson" authordesc="World's loneliest schoolboy" isquoteoftheday="false"% Aron's mother Denise, who is unsurprisingly the head of the parent-teacher council, is concerned about her son's "first winter as the only pupil."

%shareLinks-quote="I do feel sorry for Aron being all by himself at 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." type="quote" author="Denise Anderson" authordesc="mother, head of parent-teacher council" isquoteoftheday="false"% After Reddit moderator BesottedScot learned that Aron's best friends are his dog, some ducks, and flocks of sheep, he decided to rally the online community to send Aron Christmas cards and show him that while he may be alone at school, the rest of the world is thinking about him.

"We have 20,000 subscribers on here," said the moderator, "and if even 1% of you send a card that's 200 cards to a lonely boy to cheer his Christmas right up."

Based on Reddit's successful past campaigns to help children in need -- like the time that 300 Redditors showed up to a 10-year-old's birthday party because him mom posted that she was afraid no one would show up -- we have every reason to expect that Aron will be having a very merry Christmas, indeed.

If Aron's story has you feeling the Christmas Spirit, here's how you can join in with the 20,000 Redditors who have signed up to send him a card or gift!



See the heartwarming story of an elderly man, who was invited to his favorite radio show after he called in to say he was lonely:

Radio Show Invites Elderly Man on After He Says He's Lonely
Radio Show Invites Elderly Man on After He Says He's Lonely

More related stories:
Tear jerking ad reminds us that older people can be lonely on Christmas
Elderly couple calls police because they are 'lonely'
'Lonely' mouse seeks a new companion

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