Dressed as the iconic Darth Vader, David Britten sends personalised video messages to children going through a hard time and in need of a pick-me-up.
Over the past two years, he has sent more than 700 personalised video messages to children dealing with illness, death, depression or struggling with isolation during the Covid lockdowns.
Britten was obsessed with Star Wars from the age of 10, and always wished he could meet Darth Vader.
"For me, it was making him child-friendly, but how do you do that with someone who is choking people left, right and centre?"
He says once he gives them a high-five and kneels down to their height, the children instantly see he's not the super bad guy they thought.
But once and a while Darth Vader is called on to make a heartbreaking visit. Last year he kept a Star Wars fan company while she was on her death bed with only hours left to live.
He stood beside the woman and held her hand. The family told Britten the visit from Darth Vader brought a smile to her face for the first time in weeks due to the pain she was suffering.
Britten says he can't solve all the world's problems, but he can spread some unique magic and help make a difference to a child's life, one at a time.
Britten can be contacted through his Facebook page.
- By Geoff Sloan
- Public Interest Journalism funded through NZ On Air
