This bittersweet story may bring tears to your eyes. Dalton Dingus, a 9-year-old boy from Kentucky, suffers from Cystic Fibrosis and has one dying wish: to earn the Guinness World Record for receiving the most Christmas cards ever. The boy was diagnosed with stage 4 of the disease in October and had been given 2 to 8 days to live, but he's surpassed doctors' expectations.
He hopes to live to see the record broken and as Dalton's mom shared, he began to get better once he started receiving the Christmas card. Now this is a Christmas miracle!
Living with a condition like Cystic Fibrosis at such a young age must be both a difficult for the child and parents alike. Having known a sufferer, it's a struggle to maintain one's health while dealing with everyday activities. To be told your days are numbered convinces some people to start living life to the fullest, which is what Dalton is doing.
Readmore ¿Qué más?: 14-year-old girl from the slums becomes a real-life ballerina princess!
According to ABCnews.com, the Guinness World of Book Records doesn't have a category for Christmas cards, but the last time they did was in 1992 when it was set at 205,120 cards. Dalton's mother, Jessica enrolled him in the competition in hopes that they would open up a category for him.
Since announcing his goal, Dalton has received over thousands of cards from people all over the world–some even in foreign languages. The idea was first presented on a family friend's Facebook page and eventually went virtual causing many good souls to help Dalton out.
Dalton has received visits from pageant winner Miss Kentucky, state troopers, and TV stars who all delivered more cards to him. According to Jessica, the boy received 504,269 cards in a matter of days and on Christmas Eve, he was delivered 30,000 individual letters, plus 1,972 packages. WOW!
The number of cards have grown and no longer fit in his home, therefore the family has began sending the remaining ones to his grandfather's church. Even on Christmas Eve, more than 50 volunteers sorted through the mail, singling out cards that Dalton might enjoy reading.
It's amazing to see so many people helping out this one boy for a good cause. Although he is sick this seems to keep him in good spirits. Hopefully, Dalton reaches his goal!
FOX19.com-Cincinnati News, Weather
Image via Kentucky State Police
