Our View: Community steps up to support bullied Turlock girl
A heartwarming story emerged recently in Turlock, where Valley business owners stepped up to support Breanna Mendoza. She has a rare birth defect called Goldenhar syndrome that causes facial deformities. Bullied through texts and Facebook posts by classmates in elementary school, she began homeschooling but wanted to go return to public school for her eighth-grade year.
So she did, enrolling at Dutcher Middle School in Turlock. The bullying resumed and intensified after she reported it to adults at the school. A TV crew interviewed her about it, and it created an outpouring of support, including gifts from local businesses. Those gifts include a spa day in Modesto before a limo ride to a Taylor Swift concert in Santa Clara.
Also, her tuition to her new school, Turlock Christian, has been paid by donors as has the cost of tutoring to bring her up to grade level by the summer’s end.
The strength of any community is shown when it steps up to support its most vulnerable residents, and particularly when those are children. Principled Valley residents in essence sent a message to the bullies and hopefully to the bullies’ parents as well: We support this girl. Knock it off.
But the fact remains that Breanna told adults about the bullying, relied on them to stop it and then had to endure more of the same, as Bee education reporter Nan Austin explained in a story Friday.
It never should have come to this.
GET KAP A TWEET-ITOR
And while on the subjects of Turlock and bad social media judgment, it would behoove former Turlock resident and current San Francisco 49ers’ quarterback Colin Kaepernick to think twice before tweeting, as The Bee’s Ron Agostini suggested in his Thursday column. Kaepernick this week posted tweets that were insensitive toward the people of flood-ravaged Houston.
Quarterbacking the 49ers isn’t simply about playing football. It is a prestigious job that comes with great expectations not only on the field but also being a leader, role model and class individual. Granted, Facebook and Twitter weren’t around when Joe Montana and Steve Young took the team to Super Bowl victories. No matter. They saw themselves as the face of the organization. They didn’t taunt. They didn’t self-promote. No hashtags necessary.
We are all for free speech. We understand it comes with responsibility. That’s why even editorials are edited. Kap would benefit from a good tweet-itor.
OUR CONDOLENCES
Brent Layton of Escalon became a Gold Star father in 2009 when his son, 22-year-old Navy Chief Petty Officer James Layton, was killed while coming to the aid of Marines in Afghanistan. It was the same incident that led to Marine Cpl. Dakota Meyer receiving the Medal of Honor. Brent Layton became a strong advocate for Gold Star families, and was invited to the White House in 2013, when Army Capt. William Swenson became the second person from that battle to receive the Medal of Honor from President Barack Obama.
So we are sad to report that Layton, 47, suffered a heart attack and died while attending an event in Colorado over Memorial Day weekend. A Go Fund Me account has been established to help to pay his funeral expenses.
Our deepest sympathies to his family and friends.
GOING THE EXTRA 180 MILES
Congratulations to all graduates. Among them is Mae Hensley Junior High eighth-grader Armando Barragan Morales. A leukemia patient awaiting a bone marrow transplant before he can begin his freshman year at Ceres High, he received his diploma while in his hospital bed at Valley Children’s Hospital in Madera.
Kudos to Mae Hensley Principal Carol Lubinsky and administrative assistant Scott Smith for driving 180 miles round-trip to Madera to give Morales his own graduation ceremony, just like the one his classmates will enjoy June 4, complete with diploma, a speech and messages from classmates.
This story was originally published May 29, 2015 at 4:00 PM with the headline "Our View: Community steps up to support bullied Turlock girl."