Calderdale binmen's acts of kindness brings smile to young Noah's face

Little Noah Lawrence, of Boothtown, had a tough time in lockdown when he had to shield at home during the pandemic.

The one highlight of his week was a Wednesday morning visit from the SUEZ recycling truck and bin crew Kevin Lewins, Barry Taylor and Mark Wardman.

Noah would press his nose up against the window and wave at the binmen and they would wave and blow kisses back.

Over the last few weeks Kevin, Barry and Mark have adopted Noah. First they dropped him off his own model garbage truck; then a week later they gave him his own mini hi-vis vest; and the following week they brought a hi-vis cap to complete his uniform.

But the bin heroes weren’t done. The next time they turned up they had named their bin truck after their youngest workmate with ‘Noah’ emblazoned in vinyl lettering on the front and on both doors.

Noah’s mum Paige Hanson, 25, said: “It’s just amazing what the recycling crew have done for Noah. It’s such a nice thing to do and it’s great to know there’s such lovely people in the world.”

Mum-of-two Paige, who is married to Liam Hanson, 26, added: “Noah has Down Syndrome and he used to be very outgoing and would be out seven days a week but because of lockdown we had to keep him in.

“Noah doesn’t communicate very well and it’s hard to make him understand, that’s why it’s amazing he’s built a relationship with the recycling crew.

“Noah just took to them and they made him smile. They come at 8am every Wednesday but Noah doesn’t understand they don’t come every day so he’s always watching out for them.

“Noah didn’t have a clue they were going to name the truck after him and he got really excited. He knows it’s his name.”

Speaking on behalf of the crew Kevin said: “Noah was there every single week throughout the lockdowns to wave and cheer us on.

“He did such a great job at keeping our spirits up that we wanted to say thank you in our own special way.”

Gareth Richardson, senior contract manager for SUEZ in Calderdale said: “There have been so many acts of kindness shown to SUEZ crews over the last 12 months, ranging from rounds of applause to thank you posters left on bins, but Noah’s commitment was so exceptional that we just had to name our truck after him.”