6 year old has sacrificed her dream of buying a hamster to help the Royal British Legion, after she read that a thief stole a Poppy Appeal collection box from a cafe in Loughborough.
Aneya Chauhan, of Enderby prompted into action after reading an article of a theft in the local newspaper
Aneya reportedly said: “I saw the story about how people stole the money and that made me sad.
“I was going to get a hamster but I’d be happier giving my money away.”
Her savings of about £60, come from her grandparents presents during their visits, Diwali gifts and from the Tooth Fairy.
Aneya’s dad, Jignesh, 35, was amazed by his daughter’s generous spirit.
He said: “Aneya had been saving up for a hamster and we think she’s got about £60 now – she really had her heart set on it.
“There was a nice cage at Pets At Home she wanted to get.
“But then she was on the laptop reading the Leicester Mercury and she was interested in the Poppy Appeal story because she’s been learning all about the First World War in her lessons at Leicester Grammar School in Great Glen.
“When I explained what the story was all about she got really tearful and she said to me and her mother, ‘I want to give all my savings to them’.
“I said she didn’t have to do that with her money and that we would give them the money instead.
“But she said she really wanted to do it with her money.
“She was adamant she wanted to do this instead of having her hamster. It was really surprising and I thought it was very nice and caring of her.”
The collection box in the story was stolen from the Courthouse Cafe, in Loughborough town centre, that followed the theft of another box from the Co-op in Thringstone, near Coalville.
David Atterbury, county chairman of the Royal British Legion in Leicestershire and Rutland, reportedly said he was moved by Aneya’s donation.
He said: “Bless her. That’s incredibly generous.
“It’s absolutely amazing to think a youngster just reading something like that in the paper would want to reimburse the legion with the money instead of getting a hamster.
“It’s very moving.”
