A few days ago Marc Carter's desperate search to replace a little blue cup for his autistic son swept the internet, making headline news around the world in the process.
13-year-old Ben's severe autism means he will only drink from a specific cup, which Marc discovered is no longer made by its manufacturers, Tommee Tippee.
With Ben's current cup needing to be replaced, Marc, who is from Devon, turned to Twitter for help.
Explaining that Ben had used this particular kind of cup since the age of two, the 42-year-old, using the Twitter handle @GrumpyCarer, appealed for people to help him search for a new one.
'Ben hasn't drunk at school since the age of 5, he doesn't drink outside the house so we can't go anywhere,' Marc explained.
'People say he will drink when he's thirsty but two emergency trips to A&E with severe dehydration say otherwise.'
https://twitter.com/GrumpyCarer/status/798212421370318848
Marc received an incredible response, with people from around the globe contacting him to offer their old cups to Ben.
It also prompted Tommee Tippee to look into the matter with the company searching factories around the globe for the cup's original mould. The search proved successful, and a tweet from Tommee Tippee has since promised to make a new batch of the bottles just for Ben.
https://twitter.com/tommeetippee_UK/status/801721392169418752
"We are delighted to confirm that we are able to start production on a run of the original cup," a company spokesperson said.
"This will ensure that Ben has a lifetime supply and that his family won't ever have to worry about finding another cup for Ben."
A grateful Marc shared this message on YouTube after learning the news.
https://youtu.be/sL31BrFjzIw
As he says in the video, Marc now intends to use this experience as an opportunity to help other parents and carers of autistic children.
"I want to do more and I want to help people," he says, before explaining that he will continue to use his
YouTube channel and soon-to-be launched website (
www.littlebluecup.org) in order to continue the conversation. He also explains that he hopes a television company will help document the next stage of his journey, where he intends to travel to China to oversee the production of the cups.
What a story.
