Scarlett Lewis speaks with Jesse Saperstein, a best selling author who is a 42-year-old man on the autism spectrum, and started a postcard writing project to honor Scarlett’s son Jesse, who was killed at Sandy Hook.
Saperstein has many eccentricities. For example, he went trick-or-treating in his childhood neighborhood until the age of 30. He travels with a large bag of coins and a diverse assortment of bills due to his desire to always pay with exact change. (It makes vendors’ lives easier while simultaneously ruining most of his online dates!) Even small life changes are nearly impossible for him to handle, especially at the beginning. Baby steps are the only way forward. When Jesse left home for the first time at age 33 to accept a once-in-a-lifetime job opportunity in Albany, NY, he started getting haircuts at a franchise called, “Snip Its,” a child-oriented salon filled with colorful cartoon characters. Being silly with the transition was the only way he could handle letting go of his barber he had been visiting for a quarter of a century!
One of Saperstein’s hobbies is writing very long cards to people whether they are close family members, obscure relatives, friends, co-workers, or even long-lost acquaintances. One of the recipients of Jesse’s letters was Scarlett Lewis. While all of the fallen angels of Sandy Hook are heroes, Jesse Lewis stood out in a very unique way. He shouted for his classmates to run for safety before he was killed by the gunman. Saperstein wanted to honor Jesse Lewis in some way because, “He who saves one life saves the entire world.” As a tribute, he sent Scarlett 352 elaborate postcards that typically started with “Dear Jesse…”
Jesse Saperstein started writing to Jesse Lewis after having one of the worst years of his life. His year was plagued with financial woes and being taken to Civil Court after a former acquaintance was disturbed by one of his well-meaning postcards. He got the idea from the movie, “About Schmidt” when the protagonist starts writing long, rambling letters to a foster child in Africa even though the child would most likely not read and/or understand a thing. Jesse wrote to the late-Jesse about many subjects including 1980s nostalgia, his cluttered apartment, Disney World, and the lifelong frustration of having their shared name constantly misspelled at Jessie!! The postcards also talked about the bravery of its recipient who used his final moments to save a handful of lives. The postcards helped with a long healing process and brought tears to his mother’s eyes knowing that her child is still metaphorically alive.
Jesse Saperstein’s Jesse Lewis Postcard Project is now being used by the Choose Love Movement in connection to its 30 Days of Gratitude campaign, to encourage everyone to write a postcard to someone and let them know you are thankful for having them in your life. Use our Choose Love postcards from our online store or use your own. All proceeds support Choose Love no-cost programs.
About Jesse Saperstein
Jesse A. Saperstein is the author of the popular books, Atypical and Getting a Life with Asperger’s, published by Penguin Group (USA).
He lives with a high-functioning form of autism called Asperger’s syndrome that impairs social abilities while enhancing many other qualities. At the age of 22, back in 2004, Jesse pursued his dream of completing the relentless 2,174-mile Appalachian Trail while raising $19,000 for the Joey DiPaolo AIDS Foundation.
He was included as one of the fifty unsung American Heroes in the anthology, “American Spirit,” written by Taya Kyle (widow of the American Sniper, Chris Kyle) and Jim DeFelice. Jesse’s numerous public speaking credits include lecturing at the Mall of America in Minneapolis, MN, and the United Nations in New York City.
Jesse’s pitch to the Dr. Phil Show was the catalyst for an episode that premiered in February 2020, where he appeared, that saved his friend, David Elmore Smith’s life.
He provides the skills for vulnerable individuals to recognize exploitation, such as the red flags of Catfishing scams. Jesse is passionate about passing “Bailey’s Law,” which will punish perpetrators more severely for targeting the Disability population.
