A student struggling to make ends meet after becoming injured far away from his home in West Africa received a generous donation from a heroic Idaho “secret Santa.”
It was Sonny’s “dream” to study in the United States, and he had to overcome several obstacles to finally get into a school in Idaho. He also loves to play soccer, but unfortunately injured both of his knees, putting him in a lot of pain.
While he has a scheduled knee surgery coming up, money is tight because he is only allowed to work part-time on campus. His low income has made it “financially impossible” to save up enough money to cover his medical, rent, tuition, and food expenses for the 6-12 weeks he will need to recover from the procedure.
Fortunately for Sonny, a generous secret Santa teamed up with East Idaho News to give him a life-changing gift when they heard of the young man’s story.
Despite not being able to turn to his family back in Africa for financial help, someone in the local eastern Idaho community reached out to the station on his behalf when they heard of their secret Santa Christmas program funded by an anonymous good Samaritan.
Surprising Sonny at his apartment, reporter Nate Eaton arrived bearing presents—a $1,000 check, $1,000 in grocery store gift cards, and a fully-paid college semester.
Sonny’s shock was captured by the East Idaho News cameras, as he was almost speechless.
“Hey secret Santa, thank you so much I appreciate it,” Sonny said in a message to the anonymous donor.
“Keep doing what you’re doing, and I love you.”
Other lives touched by the secret Santa program include a mother of a child with special needs, a man who was recently paralyzed in an accident at work, and an elderly couple with health issues.
