An online fundraising effort was set up for a mother after her 4-year-old boy bought more than $2,000 (£1,438) worth of SpongeBob SquarePants Popsicles on Amazon.
The child, identified as Noah, is a fan of the cartoon character and ordered 51 cases of the SpongeBob Popsicles, an ice treat, to his aunt’s house in Brooklyn, New York.
A friend of the family, Katie Schloss, wrote in an Instagram post on Monday that 918 Popsicles arrived from Amazon – to the tune of a whopping $2,618.85 (£1,883).
“As (truly!) adorable as this story is, Jennifer Bryant, Noah’s mom, is a social work student at New York University (we took Policy I together) and simply cannot afford this,” wrote Ms Schloss.
According to the post, Amazon refused to return the “fruit punch and cotton candy” flavoured ice treats – with Noah’s mother forced to front the bill.
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“Ms Bryant, mom to 3 boys, doesn't know how she's going to be able to pay this off, in addition to student loans and all of her family's other expenses,” added Ms Schloss, who set up a GoFundMe page for the family.
Following the appeal, more than $3,700 (£2,661) was raised for Noah’s mother on GoFundMe — and the figure is rising.
“Thank you SO much for your mind-blowing generosity and support,” wrote Ms Bryant of the fundraising. “As a child living with ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder), all future donations will go towards Noah's education and additional supports. We cannot thank you enough. Truly.”
On Instagram, a number of people responded in bemusement at Ms Schloss’s story, with one writing: “This is the cutest thing ever. I’m sure they’ll be back up to speed soon and in the meantime he’s got a good supply of Popsicles. Those were always my favourite ones from the ice cream truck.”
Another added: “He is quite possibly the cutest thing on the planet.” Many called on Amazon to refund Ms Bryant for the popsicle haul.
The Independent has reached out to Amazon for comment.
