Amid COVID-19 lockdown, 6-year-old Jaxton gives back to the community on his birthday

6-year-old Jaxton Diotte isn’t thinking about the latest toys or video games he might get for his birthday this year — he’s thinking about helping his community during a time of need. 

For his birthday this year, the Our Lady of Lourdes senior kindergarten student has asked people to give monetary donations to the Soup Kitchen instead of presents for himself. He has raised over $630.00 in lieu of presents for his May 4 birthday so far.

“We are immensely proud of him,” said Jaxton’s mother, Amy Diotte. “It started last year when he made a donation to Kayge Fighters, it was a small donation, but he was pretty excited about it. So this year, he decided that instead of any presents at all he would like to help people that needed the help.”

Jaxton’s mother works at March of Dimes Canada, supporting disabled adults and seniors, while his father Matt is a supervisor at Home Depot. The family also makes considerable donations to the autism community and SickKids. 

“He’s been really good throughout this pandemic,” Diotte said of her son. “He hasn’t been able to see his family that much so he’s missing them, but other than that he’s going with the flow. He does recognize that he’s safe and has food and all of the things that he needs and that other people don’t necessarily have that through this really difficult time. He’s very humble.”

Diotte says that this time has been pretty overwhelming and it has been eye-opening to see how quickly things can change. Despite his young age, her son Jaxon is aware of how blessed him and his family are. He knows how lucky he is, and wants to spread positivity and luck to others who might not be as fortunate as he is. 

“Our whole family is proud of him.”