( CNN ) -- Last August , a 10-year-old boy from Missouri wrote an iReport to CNN . Braydon Nichols asked that the world not forget his father , an Army officer who died when the helicopter he and other soldiers were in was downed in Afghanistan . The grade-schooler 's iReport sparked a massive outpouring of love , encouragement and empathy . Thousands of people posted comments to the boy . Nearly 230 iReports were dedicated to him . No one would forget Army Chief Warrant Officer Bryan Nichols , everyone pledged . And over the past six months , CNN 's audience has not forgotten Braydon . There has been no let-up in comments online asking how the boy is doing and wishing him well . This week , `` Dennis '' wrote that he keeps on his computer a picture that CNN published of Braydon and his father wearing matching military uniforms . `` Take care buddy , be strong ... '' In February , `` Kenny '' wrote , `` For some reason you popped in mind tonight . I hope you are doing well , hope the school year is going good . Take care little bud . '' ( Read more of the original iReport ) Those notes mean a lot to Braydon , his uncle Monte Nichols said . `` We 've had people from across the world reach out to us . It 's been incredible for the whole family to know that people do care , '' Nichols told CNN this week . `` Braydon is doing really well in school . I think he 's making his way as best as any kid could considering the circumstances . '' Braydon is excited about his summer vacation plans . A generous person in Hershey , Pennsylvania , is paying for the boy and his mother Jessica Nichols to fly to the city , tour a chocolate factory and have a fun weekend . Still , Braydon has good and bad days . This month is going to be tough for the family because Bryan Nichols was due home from deployment in March . Last year , weeks before that horrible August morning that she had to tell her son that his father was gone , Jessica Nichols recalled how Braydon loved to fantasize giddily about how he and his dad were going camping when he finished fighting bad guys . The self-assured and computer savvy boy was a miniature Bryan Nichols . Their short , spiky blonde hair was styled the same . They both loved to quiz each other with random trivia . The kid adored his dad . `` Bryan is with us all the time , every day his memory is alive for us . It 's hard , '' Monte Nichols said . `` But it 's just as hard for all the families and the kids who lost their parents on that helicopter . Those children , just like Braydon , need to be taken care of . '' It turns out , they are . After CNN 's story appeared , and donations poured in to a college trust fund for Braydon , another group of soldiers and retired military members went to work to try to figure out what they could do . There were 32 children who lost a parent in the Chinook tragedy , and two of the wives of the men on board were pregnant , said retired Air Force Maj. Steve McLeary , the executive director of the Special Operations Warrior Foundation . The Tampa , Florida-based organization has been providing scholarships and assistance to kids and families of special operations personnel since 1980 . Read more about the Foundation and what it provides . Most of those on the Chinook were special operations . But five families who lost loved ones on the helicopter were Army and not in Special Operations , McLeary said . `` We saw the CNN story and within 15 minutes we were on a call with board members who all agreed that every child who lost a parent on that helicopter would have their college expenses covered by us , whether their parents were special operations or not , '' McLeary said . ( Tributes to the Chinook crash victims ) The foundation first sent all five of the Army families money -- about $ 10,000 each -- to cover expenses of traveling to Dover Air Force Base in Delaware to attend funerals , and to cover other expenses related to the tragedy . The foundation , which is funded by individual and corporate donations , worked with other charities to help pay for hotels for relatives who wanted to attend memorials . The Special Operations Warrior Foundation is covering all college tuition and room and board expenses for those children , too , McLeary said . `` We do n't just give money , we develop relationships with these kids from the start , '' McLeary said . `` We want to make sure they know that this is something their parent would have wanted for them . '' The organization 's trained counselors work with each child in its program , checking in with them shortly after a death to offer professional counseling and anything else the family needs . The foundation stays in touch with children by sending birthday and holiday cards . The Special Operations Warrior Foundation reaches out to kids throughout middle school , calling them , asking how they 're doing and if they need anything . A foundation representative takes a more active role when the kid reaches high school by helping them prepare and pick a college . The Special Operations Warrior Foundation has over 900 kids in their program , McLeary said . More than 203 have graduated from college , and the organization is paying for 123 kids currently in college . Knowing all that is a comfort to the Nichols family . If Braydon 's first wish was that people never forget his dad , Monte Nichols said , his second is that no one forgets kids like him .
Boy posted iReport to fallen Special Operations Warrior Foundation father summer . People have constantly asked : How is Braydon doing ? He 's performing well in school and has fun last summer plans , his uncle said . Other kids who lost parents are receiving help from Army .