LONDONDERRY – When faced with the choice of buying a limited edition Lego set or buying Lego sets for sick children, Blake Gustitus, 10, of Londonderry, picks the latter.

During the last few weeks, Gustitus has been raising money to buy Lego sets for patients at Boston Children’s Hospital because he believes it is important to consider those who are less fortunate.

“I know those kids are going through wicked tough times and some of the hardest things that they’ll go through in their lives. They’re probably really stressed and unhappy, and I find building Legos very stress-relieving,” Gustitus said.

“If you’re sick, but you’re also happy at the same time, it usually makes you feel a little better and it usually makes you forget what you’re going through. I think that Legos can do that,” he added.

The 10-year-old is a major Legos fanatic – so much so that he has a YouTube channel named Legos for Life.

He had originally began saving money to buy himself a limited edition Lego set, but, he said, “I realized that this was more important and it will make the kids happy.”

Gustitus decided to set a goal for himself: Once his YouTube channel hit 200 subscribers, he would buy some Lego sets and bring them to the Boston Children’s Hospital. He decided he was going to name his mission “Legos for Love,” — a spinoff from his YouTube gig.

Gustitus announced his plans through his mother’s Facebook page. Little did they know, they were about to reach hundreds of people.

Their Facebook video got nearly 1,000 views. One viewer suggested they set up a GoFundMe page.

Gustitus said he was expecting to get not even $100 worth of donations, yet within the first week, they had raised $2,000 for the cause.

Blake’s cause hit a soft spot for many.

“I wanted to do this to let them know that people care. I believe it is important to be grateful and to give back to other people,” Gustitus wrote on his GoFundMe page.

He understands the importance of giving back. In January 2018, Gustitus and his family lost everything to a house fire. For Blake, this included all his toys.

“People were so kind and loving and giving to him (and all of us) at that time and it had a profound effect on him,” his mother, MaryBeth, said.

She added, “I think through that process, (my children) experienced first-hand what it feels like to have people you don’t know be kind to you. It makes me proud because I see that they’re kind and they’re good. They took the experience that could have really made them angry and took it as an experience that made them grateful.”

“I truly believe that when people give to me, that I need to give back to them,” Gustitus said.

Currently Blake and MaryBeth are creating a game plan on how they will get the Legos distributed. Though Gustitus may not directly be able to meet the children, he plans on putting stickers on the packages with words of encouragement.

MaryBeth said they have received so many donations, both in Lego kits and monetary form, that they will be able to bring some of the kits to local hospitals.

“We’ll probably have several hundred kits,” MaryBeth said.

Gustitus said he is extremely grateful for everyone who has contributed to Legos for Love.

To donate to Legos for Love, visit https://www.gofundme.com/f/legos-for-love?pc=fb_dn_postdonate_r&rcid=r01-156828982392-48fd5911ef3e476a&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=fb_dn_postdonate_r

Grace Pecci may be reached at 594-1243, or at gpecci@nashuatelegraph.com.

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