Wonderful Story: Dad Heartbroken When 7-Year-Old Son with Special Needs Has Rocks Thrown at Him. Pleads with Parents

Keep Reading ↓

…calling him hurtful, cruel names…

Wonderful Story: Dad Heartbroken When 7-Year-Old Son with Special Needs Has Rocks Thrown at Him. Pleads with Parents

Cruel behavior that is left unchecked in young children can lead to permanent habits, and can then snowball into permanent life choices. Children don’t know any better, but adults can help sway this behavior and teach them to know better as they grow up.

Dan Bezzant, from Idaho Falls, Idaho, is a branch manager and avid outdoorsman. Dan is also the very proud father of six children.

Unfortunately, Bezzant and his family learned about the depths of cruelty, ignorance and bullying because of how children, and adults, have reacted to his 7-year-old son, Jackson. Jackson has been the target of merciless and cruel taunting and bullying because of his appearance, as he is afflicted with an appearance-altering disease called Treacher Collins Syndrome.

Treacher Collins Syndrome is a disease that causes the bones of Jackson’s face to remain severely underdeveloped, and the condition has left him nearly deaf, and has also affected his eyesight. He has had several surgeries and will need to have even more as he grows to correct the condition.

Dan Bezzant wrote:

My heart is in pieces right now…my soul feels like it’s ripping from my chest…this beautiful young man my son Jackson has to endure a constant barrage of derogatory comments and ignorance like I’ve never witnessed. He is called ugly and freak and monster on a daily basis by his peers at school. He talks about suicide…he’s not quite 8! He says he has no friends and everyone hates him. Kids throw rocks at him and push him shouting these horrific words…please please take a minute and imagine if this were your child. Take a minute to educate your children about special needs. Talk to them about compassion and love for our fellow man. His condition is called Treacher Collins. Maybe even look it up. He’s endured horrific surgery and has several more in the coming years. Anyway…I could go on…but please educate your children. Please…share this. This shouldn’t be happening…to anyone.

Jackson’s peers and classmates responded to his appearance by calling him hurtful, cruel names like, “monster,” “ugly,” and by throwing rocks at him. Bezzant decided to take to social media to reach out and educate the parents of the bullies when he found out the deep extent of Jackson’s daily experiences and that his little boy had even considered suicide.

On Thursday, Sept. 14, Bezzant wrote a heartfelt plea to the parents of Jackson’s bullies, and his greater community, urging them to teach their children understanding and to learn more about children with special needs. Bezzant’s post has received almost 37,000 shares, 38,000 reactions and over 21,000 comments and counting since its recent posting.

Bezzant starts the piece by writing, “My heart is in pieces right now…my soul feels like it’s ripping from my chest.” He goes on to write about how Jackson has expressed that he has no friends, that he feels he is hated and how people push and harass him.

While the treatment that Jackson received from his peers hurts Bezzant, he is most disturbed by the lack of parental guidance that Jackson’s bullies have received. Bezzant addresses parents in his heartfelt Facebook post by saying, “Take a minute to educate your children about special needs…Talk to them about compassion and love for our fellow man…please educate your children.”

The post has generated a lot of goodwill and sympathy for Jackson’s plight. Facebook poster Kelly Wells wrote, “I’m so sorry your sweet boy has to deal with these cruel bullies….. the parents need to educate their children by example! Kindness & acceptance cost $0 but are worth a million bucks!”

After Bezzant posted his letter on Facebook, he learned that there were two other children in his community that had Treacher Collins Syndrome. All the families hope to meet soon for a get together and to form a special playgroup for the kids.

Bezzant’s pleas about acceptance for children with special needs has reached some people, as he has been assured by several parents and their children that they will look out for Jackson when they are around. To bolster his esteem, Bezzant has also set up a snail mail pen pal address for people to send his son letters, which can be mailed to: Jackson Bezzant, P.O. Box 1563, Idaho Falls, ID, 83403.

The father is content that he has shone a light on bullying, helped his son and tried to enlighten others about special needs children. Bezzant said, “I am receiving constant messages of people sending love and prayers for Jackson…All I am asking is that you teach your children about bullying and making sure that kids understand that people are built differently and God loves us all.”

…targeted because of his skin color.

Heart Warming: Tells Cook He Doesn’t Want “Black Man Touching His Food.” Then 8-Year-Old Girl Leaves Him in TEARS

Racism is an unavoidable subject in the media today. Though it can be a difficult topic to discuss and sensitive in nature, it is important that it is not avoided for those reasons.

Whether or not you have personally experienced or witnessed racism, there are sadly many occurrences still taking places daily. There are devastating stories that many who have been hurt by racism have shared.

Even though these stories are heartbreaking, the voices of those suffering need to be heard. Even when victims themselves are silenced, there are those willing to use their own voices to take a stand.

One KFC worker was targeted because of his skin color. He never expected for an 8-year-old girl to be an advocate on his behalf.

Eight-year-old Autumn was at a KFC with her mother Danee Maserang when they witnessed an act of racism. One of the cooks was a black man.

A customer made it clear that he would not accept food from this particular cook simply because of his skin color. The customer said, “I don’t want any black man touching my food, so you have to re-cook it.”

The mother and daughter saw the hurt in the cook’s face when he heard that horrible statement. They both wanted to do something to show their support for the cook.

Maserang got in touch with her friend Jana, who thought of a creative idea. Jana worked at a Christian school as an art teacher.

Jana’s students were given the task of creating cards for the KFC cook. The students also included messages in the cards to show their support.

The cook’s experience itself as well as the art project of making cards for him were eye-opening for students. Many had never personally encountered racism beyond it being explained in history books.

Serena, Jana’s daughter, wrote “God loves you” and “I’m sorry that happened” in the card she made. Maserang and Jana took their daughters back to KFC to deliver the handmade cards and gifts to the cook.

The cook tearfully accepted their offerings of support and clearly looked touched that the customer’s racism toward him did not go unnoticed or unheard. While the students learned a meaningful lesson on racism and touched this cook with their kindness, may this story also encourage us to be more proactive in fighting against racism so that these situations cease to exist.