Carer Asks Strangers To Post Christmas Cards To Down's Syndrome Couple To Cheer Them Up

A woman has begged Brits to send Christmas cards to her sister with Down's Syndrome, after she was forced to self-isolate from February.

Lindi Newman wrote a Facebook status explaining her sister Maryanne's situation, and highlighted how she was missing contact from the outside world.

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Both Maryanne, 49, and her husband Tommy Pilling, 62, have Down's Syndrome. As Tommy has been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease, the pair have been forced to isolate since the beginning of the year due to the ongoing coronavirus crisis.

The nine-month lockdown has been heavy-going on the pair, so Lindi urged her friends to send cards for the couple to enjoy.

"My sister and my brother-in-law both have Down's Syndrome and have been married for 25 years, together for 30. They are thought to be the longest married couple both with DS in the world and the first in the UK," Lindi's message began.

"Tommy sadly has Alzheimer's disease and they have both had to self-isolate together since February so this has had a terrible impact on Tommy and he has declined dramatically."

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Lindi continued: "The reason for this post is to ask if anyone would like to send them a Christmas card to make them smile? I have set up a P.O box for them to receive cards from their followers on Facebook but I thought I would ask here.

"They are so lonely and have had their favourite activities taken away (going out to play golf, the gym, manicures, farms, the zoo, bowling, cinema etc) They cannot mix with family (apart from me and they are fed up with me now."

The heartfelt plea prompted people from all around the world to say they were going to post their love to Maryanne and Tommy.

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People from as far away as El Savador, the Netherlands and the United States all sent their love to the couple.

And while the message may have only been posted on social media last week, Tommy and Maryanne have already received over 100 cards from all across the world.

If you're interested in sending a card to the pair, their PO Box can be found here.

Topics: Christmas, Life News, Life, Coronavirus, Real Life, Covid-19

Kimberley Bond

Kim is a journalist at Tyla, and has previously worked at the Evening Standard, Radio Times as well as several national newspapers. A showbiz obsessive and a television fanatic, Kim is particularly interested in celebrity gossip, A-list events and the latest releases on either the big or small screen. Contact her at [email protected]

@0xKimberley