A 6-year-old boy from Grants Pass, Oregon, was late to school in 2015. Because of problems with his family’s vehicle, his mother, Nicole, knew young Hunter would likely have to go to detention.As a result, Nicole visited him at school during lunch. She just wanted to see how she was doing, but she got more than she bargained for.Nicole watched her son be subjected to what many would consider public humiliation rather than seeing him detained. Suffice to say, she was not satisfied.
To make matters worse, the family car decided to break down just as Nicole was dropping her son Hunter off at school. Nicole was already in bad shape.Nicole did her best to walk her son across the street to Lincoln Elementary School, because taking the bus was not an option; However, she arrived a few minutes late.
Hunter entered the building crying, knowing he would be sent to detention. Nicole regretted everything very much, but she decided to visit the school during lunch to see how she was doing and, if possible, console him.“Sometimes Hunter isn’t ready, but most of the time the delay is not his fault. “Nicole suffers from osteoporosis, which makes it painful and difficult for her to function, especially in the morning.”Nicole arrived at school and found Hunter sitting alone. The fact that her son was isolated from the other students at school surprised her.
A white screen in front of the 6-year-old boy’s seat prevented him from seeing or talking to other children.Additionally, a cup with the letter “D” was placed in front of him (for punishment), and Hunter sat there crying. Her mother’s heart broke seeing Hunter publicly ignored and humiliated.Like any mother, Nicole was horrified by the way the school had treated her son. The punishment seemed too harsh.
Hunter was rarely late for school, and that day he wasn’t late enough to catch up on any work, which made Nicole’s anger even more intense.The mother’s eyes could hardly believe it, but she was not going to remain impassive and do nothing about what had happened to her son.Nicole took a photo of Hunter as he sat in his corner embarrassed, knowing he had to do something. She then shared it on Facebook, where it quickly went viral in the neighborhood.
The photographs were posted on Facebook by Hunter’s grandmother and have been shared more than 75,000 times:This is my grandson, Hunter. He is a little first grader. His mother’s car doesn’t always start correctly. He sometimes comes a few minutes late to school. Yesterday he arrived 1 minute late and his mother found out this is what they are doing to him as punishment! They did this to him 6 times for something beyond this little guy’s control! They make fun of him in front of the other students! The director is responsible for this. His mother found him there crying and took him home for the day. Does anyone want to help me bombard this manager with calls telling her how inappropriate this is?
It seemed that school politics intimidated Hunter.The school district was inundated with angry calls and the school’s Facebook page was bombarded with bad reviews.After the photos went viral, other Grants Pass residents wanted to help. Their mission was to make sure Hunter was never late for school again: strangers flocked to help them with their car problems.When Hunter’s mom and dad went to pick up their car from the mechanic, they got the surprise of their lives.
Nicole and her family showed up at Kelly’s Automotive Service a few days later expecting to find out that their car couldn’t be repaired. Hunter’s father, Mark Cmelo, expected to receive more bad news about the car.But it was the opposite.
The car dealership had partnered with community members to purchase another vehicle from them to ensure it was reliable.Several businesses in Medford, Oregon and Grants Pass, as well as local radio host Bill Meyer, joined forces to contribute.Nicole and her family were then given the keys to a Chrysler van.
“See that truck over there?” asked Lisa McClease-Kelly of Kelly’s Automotive Service.“It’s yours,” he said, handing Marc the keys to a Chrysler minivan.The family was shocked and moved.“I am surprised to see the community mobilize like this and see that there are still good people,” Father Marc said happily.In addition to receiving a vehicle that would ensure Hunter arrived at school on time, Hunter’s story changed the way the school handled its detention policies.They designated a supervised classroom so that the children would not be humiliated in front of all their classmates.