Clogher woman’s birthday appeal for letter-loving brother

A LETTER-loving Clogher Valley man is going to receive some extra-special presents this year when he celebrates his 40th birthday – all thanks to a brainwave from his sister Adele!

Jonathan Crawford, who has Down’s syndrome, likes nothing better than to receive mail the old-fashioned way. And so, for his upcoming milestone, Adele has ensured Jonathan’s letterbox will be bursting at the hinges with birthday cards after posting up an emotional appeal on social media.

Unsure what to get her brother to mark his 40 years, Adele came up with her unusual, but apt, idea while she was on a recent holiday to Mexico.

Adele told the UlsterHerald, “Johnny is a tricky fellow to buy for as he tends to enjoy the simpler things in life, rather than materialistic items.”

After giving it much thought, she decided to send him 40 birthday cards, up until his birthday. In an appeal to her friends on social media, Adele said, “I am looking for you to help me by sending him a birthday card for his big milestone… He loves getting things in the post (old fashioned snail mail).”

Since branching out to social media to encourage her friends to help out with her idea, Adele said the post had ‘exploded’.

“Let’s just say the chances of him receiving forty cards have increased tenfold,” she revealed.

Adele has received hundreds of kind-hearted messages and the mass of cards filtering through her letterbox in Clogher Valley to date is nothing short of astounding.

She said, “I think the request touched the hearts of a lot of people and gave them hope. It can be scary and isolating having a member of your family with Down’s syndrome, and it can feel like you are alone.

“When he was born, way back in those days, the doctor’s prognosis was that he would be ‘like a rag doll’ and wouldn’t have much quality of life.”

Adele continued, “I think his story resonated with a lot of people and people found it nice to see someone with additional needs living a happy and full life.”

The Facebook post, receiving an upward of 4.2k likes, has circulated around the globe with residents of New Zealand, America, and Poland branching out in contribution toward making Jonathan’s 40th birthday the best one yet. The public are going above and beyond just simply ‘posting a card’, with requests flooding in to enquire on what Johnny likes, so they can add special touches to their cards.

Living on a farm and being the number one fan of Margaret Johnson’s ‘Country Gospel’ music, Jonathan’s likes include ‘cows, farming, pipebands and accordions’ and members of the community are drawing upon this to personalise their cards.

“A man from Dungannon has kindly offered to come down to Clogher Valley to play the pipes for Jonathan on his birthday and ‘Dodgy Del’ has also offered to send Johnny a pair of designer shoes,” laughed Adele.

Baffled at the amount of people willing to take time from their day to send a card, Adele said, “I’m overwhelmed. The idea is so simple, but I know Jonathan will get so much pleasure out of it.

“It shows the genuine good nature of people and the generosity of every single person who took the time to send a card. It is just lovely and so heart-warming.

“It has definitely restored all my faith in humanity,” Adele added.