Like many a 5-year-old going on 6, Danny Nickerson likes trotting out to the mailbox.
"He loves going to the mailbox and finding mail with his name on it,” Danny's mother, Carley Nickerson, told the Attleboro Sun Chronicle.
Danny Nickerson, 5, with one of the many birthday cards he's been receiving from strangers around the country who have heard his story. (Image source: Danny's Warriors/Facebook)
The mail, which has been pouring in just a few days before Danny clocks in at a year older on July 25, is especially important to his family this year though, because it is serving as encouragement for the Massachusetts boy who was diagnosed with an inoperable form of cancer last October.
"Danny’s birthday means so much to us this year," Carley Nickerson told the newspaper.
The form of cancer Danny has, known as DIPG, is one of the most resistant to chemotherapy treatment. According to the website The Cure Starts Now, less than 10 percent of children will live longer than 18 months after diagnosis and "survival is even more rare."
Danny Nickerson turns 6 years old on July 25. The boy with a particularly aggressive and difficult to treat form of cancer has been receiving birthday cards after the local newspaper ran a story about his condition and his mother's request for something to make him smile. (Image source: Danny's Warriors/Facebook)
With such statistics, Carley Nickerson said "every day is a blessing to us" and noted how the cards are just meant to bring her son joy during a difficult time, the Foxboro Reporter reported.
"We went to check the PO box yesterday. Another package, and lots of Cards! Danny took the key to open the box and his eyes lit up! Are those all for me?? He cant wait to open them! Here [is] a picture of everything so far! And still more coming in! 12 more days untill my baby turns 6!" Carley Nickerson wrote on a Facebook page to support Danny.
It started with a local news story that made it to Twitter and went viral. Now the soon-to-be 6-year-old is receiving hundreds of birthday cards. (Image source: Danny's Warriors/Facebook)
Watch WCVB-TV's report about the amount of cards Danny has been receiving since his story posted in the local newspaper went viral last week:
If you're interested in sending Danny a card, here's how he can be reached: Danny Nickerson, P.O. Box 212, Foxboro, MA 02035.
His family also set up a website and Go Fund Me page to help with expenses, which has already raised more than its $15,000 goal.
(H/T: WGGB-TV)
