Thaindian News

October 16, 2010 (Pen Men at Work): Kathleen Edward, 7, has caught the attention of many with her story. Kathleen’s mother succumbed to Huntington’s Disease last year, leaving the young girl in the care of her father and grandmother. Kathleen herself has the dreaded disease and is not expected to live much longer as the juvenile form is a rare and aggressive version of the hereditary, degenerative brain disease, which is fatal within five to ten years of the onset of the symptoms. But that’s not what made Kathleen a household name in her town.

Evidently, Kathleen’s neighbors, Jennifer and Scott Petkov, have been cyber-bullying the little girl for quite some time now. Kathleen’s grandmother, Rebecca Rose, told the media that the couple who lives next door to them in Trenton, Michigan, had had a fallout with herself earlier, and in their vengeance they started posting inappropriate messages on the internet about Kathleen and her late mother, Laura. Apparently, the couple posted doctored photos of Kathleen, with her face replaced by the skull and cross bones, as well as of Laura in the Grim Reaper’s arms. They also parked a pick-up truck outside Kathleen’s house painted with death messages and other such images.

Rebecca Rose said her family was forced to go through this torture and even the Trenton Police didn’t do much to help them. The only relief they got was when Hans and Tricia Masing, owners of the Tree Town Toys in Ann Arbor, heard this heartbreaking story. The Masings started a fund-raising campaign to give Kathleen the best day of her life, and organized a shopping spree for her at their toy store. They gave the same opportunity to several other children affected with the disease and are planning to send the remainder of the funds raised as a gift certificate to a local children’s hospital.

While Kathleen’s bullies have stopped their preposterous behavior and have publicly apologized to the family, the Petkovs have not been officially charged with anything.