Meet Romello “Mello” Early, a student at Buffalo Creek Academy Charter School in Buffalo. Mello, 12, couldn’t stand watching his friend get taunted for wearing worn-out shoes, so he decided to do something about it.
Mello’s friend Melvin Anderson often got picked on for wearing shoes that were worn out. Mello told The Washington Post, “I really didn’t appreciate other people talking about him that way.”
Mello called his mom Anita James, and said, “I’m getting tired of them bullying my friend about his shoes. It’s making me so upset.”
Mello asked his mom if they could buy Melvin some new shoes, and his mom told him that they would talk about it when she got home from work. Once his mom had a chance to talk about it Mello said, “Can I use my allowance, or you can take something away that I would get for Christmas?”
Mello continued, “You should always treat people the way you want to be treated. I have a lot of stuff, so I was thinking, let’s bless somebody else today.”
“Nobody could make fun of him or say anything about him anymore.”
When Mello finally gave Melvin his new shoes, Melvin told The Washington Post, “I was totally shocked. I felt very happy and very surprised. I was grateful that he gave me the shoes.”
