What to Know
- Robbie's mom died May 2; his dad died May 24, and his aunt became his legal guardian a day after that
- According to aunt Crystal Skawinski, 9-year-old Robbie loves rainbows -- and Skawinski asked for help making him smile
- Since a July 24 Facebook post, Robbie has gotten thousands upon thousands of photos of rainbows sent to him from across the globe
Robbie, a 9-year-old boy with autism from upstate New York, loves rainbows -- and when his parents died weeks apart -- his aunt, now his legal guardian, asked the world for help making him smile.
The world responded.
Crystal Skawinski has been Robbie's legal guardian since May 25, a day after his father died of an overdose and 23 days after his mother lost a long battle with a gasteoparisis and cystic fibrosis. Skawinski says Robbie has been told his parents went over the rainbow bridge -- and he looks for them eagerly. So on July 24, Skawinski put a post on Facebook soliciting rainbow photos from around the world.
As of Friday, she had gotten nearly 6,000. And Skawinski says she has been floored by the touching responses.
"I'm speechless. This doesn't happen to regular people," she wrote on Facebook early Sunday. "Thanks big sis for making your son a part of the world and to touch thousands of hearts. We miss you guys SO much. Hope you are enjoying Heaven!"
Skawinski also pledged to make her sister and brother-in-law proud as a parent to their little boy.
