On May 14, 2010 I received a call saying my daughter was involved in an "incident" at school, but they said "don't worry, she didn't retaliate".  What sort of incident is this?  She was jumped right in the hallway of her school by one girl and held by another girl.  She was beaten so brutally that they broke her eye socket and shattered her nose, severe concussion and brain trauma; all while over 60 kids just stood around and NOT ONE KID stepped in to help.  What are we teaching kids these days?  Since when do you NOT stand up for your fellow schoolmate?  Since when do you just STAND THERE and watch someone be so brutally beaten that they just sit around for over a month coloring in coloring books, can't sleep at night afraid they will come back.  Now, 3 years later, we still deal with the trauma, but because we stood up for our daughter, our son us now bullied because he is "Christie's Brother".  So what, no one was there to help.  Not one person stepped in to help, not one person stepped up to help pay for medical bills, we are still paying for medical and therapy with no end in site - all because NO ONE stepped in to help.

It takes JUST ONE person to say STOP.  It takes JUST ONE person, to smile at someone that you've never smiled at.  It takes JUST ONE person to sit with that lonely kid at the lunch table.  It takes JUST ONE person to say, NOT TODAY.  I take a stand and I may be JUST ONE, but I will do everything I can in my life to make sure NOT ONE kid is hurt again because I am JUST ONE.

-Nan Paulick