Uploaded November 2024 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago

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It was just two days before Christmas in 1958 when John Cruitt’s mother died after being seriously ill with multiple sclerosis. At the time, he was a student in Cecile Doyle’s third grade class, and an act of kindness she showed him became stamped in his memory. So, more than 50 years later, he wrote her a letter. At StoryCorps, John and Mrs. Doyle reflected on the difference they made in each other’s lives.
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Directed by
Richard O’Connor

Executive Producers
Michael Garofalo
Rachel Hartman
Dave Isay

Producer
Savannah Winchester

Audio Produced by
Katie Simon
Michael Garofalo

Supervising Sound Recordist
John White

Audio Mixed By
Jarrett Floyd

Animation by
Ace & Son Moving Picture Co., LLC

Design
Natalie Greene

Animators
Taisiya Zaretskaya
Natalie Greene

Art Production
Ruyin Tsai

Original Music
Joshua Abrams

Music Performed by
Joshua Abrams
Hamid Drake
Marquis Hill
Emmett Kelly
Adam Thornburg

Music Mixed by
Joshua Abrams
Neil Strauch

Outro Music by
“Grey Grey Joe” by Blue Dot Sessions
From the Album TinyTiny Trio
Published by Blue Dot Sessions

Special Thanks
John Cruitt
Cecile Doyle

In Partnership with
American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress
NPR
POV

Funding Provided by
Corporation for Public Broadcasting
A private corporation funded by the American people.

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