When it comes to the crunch, the people of this city won’t let you down...
WELLWISHERS ENSURE THAT AUTISTIC TEEN CAN COPE WITH THE CRISPS SHORTAGE
WHEN 14-year-old Connor Lewis started refusing meals because he was unable to have his favourite crisps due to the Walkers shortage, his parents were at the end of their tether.
The Enderby schoolboy, who is severely autistic, non-verbal and has numerous learning difficulties, has a limited diet which consists predominantly of smoky bacon flavoured Walkers crisps – a familiar texture and taste.
But a production shortage has left gaps on shelves across the country, leaving his parents resorting to driving to motorway services to find them.
When parents Sarah and Jay Lewis contacted the Leicester Mercury for help, they did not expect what came next.
In the space of 24 hours, more than 20 wellwishers contacted the family. Some emptied their kitchen cupboards, others searched their local corner shops and some even ordered crisps from Amazon.
One anonymous good Samaritan sourced more than 100 packets of the crisps, which the Mercury has delivered to the family, along with several other deliveries from kind strangers. “I can’t believe how massive it got,” Sarah said yesterday. “This morning, Connor had his medicine and had his crisps and he looked so happy - he just hasn’t looked like that.”
Connor spun around in joy, something his mum says he often does when he is happy.
She added: “For someone like Connor, who can’t talk and has the conditions he does, all of those feelings are internal so you can only interpret things by his facial expressions or his body language. And this morning it was like a huge uplift.”
After their plea, support came from all over, including Connor’s school transport team, teachers, neighbours and friends .
Parents facing similar challenges also got in touch to share advice and words of support.
“We just want to say a huge thank you to everyone,” Sarah said. “And to the anonymous donor, we just want to say that it really does make a difference.
“I think it says a lot about this city and the people who live here – it’s been wonderful.”
Thanks to all the deliveries and donations, Connor’s parents believe he now has enough packets to last until Walkers’ production returns to normal.
I think it says a lot about this city and the people who live here – it’s been wonderful
Sarah Lewis, pictured