COVID-19 Is affecting our mission, but see how we are responding! Learn More >
A family in Toledo, Ohio recently had a son, RJ, who was diagnosed with two rare conditions – Agenesis of the Corpos Callosum, which affects the brain’s development, and Mosaic Trisomy 9 Syndrome, a rare chromosomal disorder. RJ, now four months old, is hanging on as his parents are (understandably) doing everything they can to help their son. Only about half of children with Mosaic Trisomy 9 live until the age of two.
Not surprisingly, RJ’s medical bills are astronomically high, a reality that is exacerbated by the rarity of his diseases. So, as is common nowadays, his parents started crowdfunding and hosting other types of fundraisers. His dad, KC, tried advertising a December fundraiser to help cover medical bills by posting flyers at the local mall. This effort was met by these signs:
Two things are clear: one, that this disturbed individual is not a parent. Two, that they have zero regard for human life. Incidents like this are a litmus test for a culture’s respect for life (born or preborn). And for crying out loud – this was heavily premeditated. This person, so full of hatred for a sick stranger, made multiple of these, on what looks like plywood or cardboard, spray-painted, neatly stenciled, and *almost grammatically correct.
Disgust is about 90% of the gut reaction here. But everyone would do well to take a leaf out of RJ’s family’s book, who told their local news station:
“We want to raise our son to not reciprocate hatred. We want to battle hatred with love. We obviously know somebody that did this is disturbed and we hope they get help. But, we’re going to keep taking your signs down as we see them because this town doesn’t need hatred. This town needs love.”
Joke’s on the anonymous aggressor, since the media attention from the disgraceful incident launched the family’s GoFundMe almost $40,000 over their initial goal. As RJ’s mom, Angela, noted on the fundraising page… Love always wins.
