“All I ask for is for safety,” said a letter to Santa.
The letter, posted to the Chicago Sun-Times by 13-year-old Malik Bryant was part of a program run by Direct Effect Charities.
The charity collects the letters and sends them to donors, asking for a $25 gift to be sent to the school of the student writing the letter.
When CEO Michelle DiGiacomo received Bryant’s letter, though, she could not stop reading it. She thought the letter should reach someone “bigger than Santa” and contacted her Congressman, Rep. Michael Quigley (D-Illinois), who passed it on to President Obama.
The president sent a letter back, saying, “Please know your security is our priority for me and everything I do as President.” He also told Bryant to work hard so he could do anything he wanted and added that he was rooting for Bryant.
Bryant posted a video in which he read the letter. He was surprised that the president himself responded but said the Chicago area where he lives is still dangerous: “I’m surprised like he wrote it but it’s not going to solve safety reasons out here, it’s still dangerous.”