Their strange but lovely friendship has warmed our hearts.

As people get older, their circle of friends shrinks, and sadly, many of them don’t have any kind of social interaction and spend their days alone.

Dorothy ‘Mercy’ Ballard, an elderly lady from England, is looking forward to any opportunity to be near others. That is why she appreciates the companionship of Ben, the garbage collector who comes once a week to take up her rubbish.
Despite just chatting for around 10 minutes, the two became very good friends over the years. Ben once informed Mercy that he would send her a cake for her 100th birthday. Ben followed his commitment, and he is a fantastic man.

He can be seen carrying a birthday cake as he walks towards Mercy’s house. But he isn’t alone. His coworkers are also present to wish Mercy a happy birthday.

Mercy is overjoyed when she opens the door and sees the cake. She had the best surprise ever, and she even got to blow out candles.

Ben is grateful to have Mercy in his life. He claims that he has picked up her trash for years and that she always greets him at the door with a big smile. Mercy enjoys telling Ben stories about her life, and he enjoys telling her about new technology and gadgets that didn’t exist at the time.

I’ve been a binman for about 11 years and enjoy hearing her life stories – having been born in 1919, she can’t believe what technology can accomplish now, and she couldn’t wrap her brain around my phone.

When I was shooting our selfie with my two coworkers, she asked, ‘Where should I look?’

When it comes to true friendship, years are only a number for these two.

People loved the story of Mercy and Ben so much that the two became sort of celebrities in the area. Some TV news and outlets even asked them for an interview.

Mercy expresses her gratitude that there are still people like Ben who care about the elderly. He, for one, says he’s grateful to be her best friend and hopes she lives to be 105 so he can surprise her again.

Lovely Mercy, on the other hand, believes that living a century is more than enough. She has seen a lot in her life, and we can learn a lot from this lovely and wise elderly lady.