A Friendship transcends age and other limitations as Aoife Malone becomes the most unlikely of friends with a senior nearly four times her age.
19-year-old Aoife Isabella Malone from Belfast, Northern Ireland, shared her unusual friendship on her TikTok account, @aoifebellamalone.
She mentioned that about a decade ago, she moved to a small town in Scotland to study fashion.
Little did she know that she would develop the most unlikely of friendships with an elderly man.
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To support herself, she worked at a local bookie where she first met Tommy, an 89-year-old man who had lost his wife a year earlier.
Lonely and miserable, Tommy wasn’t into gambling; however, he was a regular at the bookie store to chat with the staff.
Sensing his loneliness, Malone asked him to join her for a bingo night. Overjoyed at the invitation, Tommy arrived dapperly dressed for the event.
Three of Malone’s university friends accompanied her, and Tommy became the star of the event when he showed up with four young women by his side.
After this incident, the friendly bond between Malone and Tommy grew stronger, as she visited his home frequently to share meals and watch movies.
Due to his warm and friendly nature, Tommy quickly became good friends with all of Malone’s university friends, her cousins, and her family.
He also took her for driving lessons every day, even though she had instructors back home in Belfast. She claims she wouldn’t have passed her driving test without Tommy’s help and guidance.
In 2019, when she graduated from her university, he was his mom’s plus-one.
Tommy moved to Edinburgh after some time, but even distance could not keep the best of friends apart.
He still made sure to visit Malone regularly, showing up for shows, movies, and dinners, and even mingling with her work colleagues.
When the COVID-19 pandemic struck, she had moved to New York City, but still called him every single day to check on him.
She knew how lonely he must be feeling, especially due to the lockdowns, and feared she might never get to see him again.
On Tommy’s 95th birthday in 2020, she posted on her Instagram account, urging people to send birthday wishes and cards to him.
The post quickly went viral, with 11,000 people liking it, and Tommy ended up receiving more than 170 cards and wishes from people around the world.
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Malone and Tommy share a heartwarming relationship, with him supporting her through university stress, breakups, and difficult jobs.
As he awaits his 99th birthday this year, he now lives in a care home, but Malone catches up with him every six weeks.
She believes he’s as sharp and witty as when she first met him around 10 years ago.
Being a World War II veteran, Tommy has shared several interesting stories from his past with Malone, while she has taught him to do the peace sign and helped him discover new experiences.
One act of kindness led to a beautiful yet unlikely friendship between Malone and Tommy. This also proves, that age is no barrier and one can be friends with anyone.
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