In tiny Bayberry, New York – population around 2,500 – a 17-year-old boy has big dreams. But while some kids may aspire to become a movie star or an astronaut, Matthew Watkins’ dreams are simpler: he wants to be a mailman.
And in a town the size of Bayberry, which is north of Syracuse, everybody knows everybody else. Which is why Liverpool Postmaster Lanny Hicks (the town right next to Bayberry) knew about Matthew’s dream and wanted to do everything he could to see that it came true.
You see, Matthew hasn’t had an easy time of it in his tender 17 years on the planet. Last year, he was diagnosed with leukemia, and had to drop out of Liverpool High School to get treatment in Rochester.
When he came home, the entire mail team of Liverpool wanted to give him a very special surprise, and they went all out to do it, too. Gathering 20 postal trucks to form a flotilla of mail deliveries, the trucks circled his house, and Postmaster Hicks presented Matthew with a special official postman’s shirt, a sash recognizing him as “Matt the Mailman,” and a few other gifts.
For not only Matthew, but his mother and sister, it was truly a dream realized.
“He’s not defined by his disease, he wasn’t always like this,” Matthew’s devoted sister Sarah said in a TV interview.
“He has a lot of work to do, but he’s doing it, he’s getting stronger every day,” his mother Jennifer added of his ongoing recovery following cancer treatments.
Naturally, everyone in Bayberry and Liverpool wish Matthew the best of health. With a team like that on his side, we’d say this courageous teen is going first-class all the way. Maybe Lanny Hicks better watch out, for Matthew may be vying for his job very, very soon.
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