Letters to a Bullied Girl

For Olivia Gardner, an epileptic, the bullying began in middle school. It took the form of name-calling after she suffered a seizure in front of her peers. Olivia was singled out as different, rejected by her peers, and tormented in the hallways and on the Internet with an “Olivia’s Haters” website created by her classmates. Olivia’s bullies dragged her backpack through the mud, taunted her in school, and wore “I Hate Olivia” bracelets. With each incident, Olivia withdrew. Wouldn’t you?

Olivia considered ending her suffering by taking her own life until one small act of kindness by complete strangers gave her reason to hope again.

In March 2007, sisters Emily and Sarah Buder read about Olivia’s story in a local newspaper. They felt her pain, and took action. The sisters mobilized a letter-writing campaign called “Olivia’s Letters.” Emily and Sarah encouraged their peers to write letters to the bullied girl: messages of healing, hope, inspiration and understanding. Their goal was to let Olivia know that she was not alone and that she had reason to believe in herself again.

As word spread about “Olivia’s Letters,” the girls’ P.O. box started to overflow. Outpourings of stories, support, emotion and encouragement arrived from complete strangers drawn to Olivia because of something in her story that touched their hearts.