Ashley Wastakiewicz is 7 years old, a first-grader, and by the way she clings onto her kitty and doggy — we can tell she is an animal lover.
However, Ashley has been dealing with an ongoing struggle for more than a year. An 11-year-old boy has bullied her so persistently that she is afraid to go outside and play.
“She has felt that nobody loves her, nobody cares about her. She feels alone,” her mom said. “She is afraid to come outside to play. She has been cooped up most of the summer because she is afraid to come out and play with the fear of being bullied.”
At one point the boy beat her up so badly that he put her in the hospital. Charges were pursued by the police, and yet, the bullying continued.
Bullied children often suffer deeply. It can take an entire community to heal those wounds. When Zachary Jamison was bullied, it took his parents, teachers, and reforming the school bully to get it to stop.
That’s why Ashley’s mother, Christine, created an anti-bullying Facebook page called “Justice For Ashley” to rally support for her. Yet, Christine never expected that these were the guests that would show up.
Dozens of members of the local motorcycle club arrived to show their support and use a bit of intimidation (hey, we know they’ve got hearts of gold, but they do look pretty tough!) to send a message to the bully.
See the story of how a few bikers changed the life of one hurting little girl!
Meet Ashley Wastakiewicz: She’s 7 years old, a little shy, and has been the victim of her neighbor’s torment for over a year. The 11-year-old bullied Ashley so badly that he even put her in the hospital. “She was pushing her bike home and the bully had pushed her to the ground, had kicked her and had punched her in her face,” her mom, Christine said. While the boy’s mother denies the allegations, the young man was charged with assault.
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Ashley felt so tormented by the bully that she made a video. In it, she says, “My name is Ashley and I’m 7 years old. I am a victim of bullying by an 11-year-old boy. It hurts me very much. Please, stop bullying.”
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Christine posted the video onto an anti-bullying Facebook page she created for Ashley. The video got the attention of local bikers like James Dingmon. “We got word from other brothers at other clubs and we all met,” Dingmon, a member of American Veterans Motorcycle Club of Jackson, said. “I don’t believe in bullying. Nobody should be bullied.”
John R. Spencer / Facebook
That’s when these guys showed up. “We wanted a show of force, that she is loved and she’s got people out here that care for her,” Dingmon said. The dozens of bikers swarmed her home, neighborhood and park.
John R. Spencer / Facebook
“We made a difference tonight and helped in the widespread fight against bullying, particularly with a very serious case with a wonderful little 7 year old girl named Ashley, whom has (had) a terrible bully in her neighborhood for quite some time now and has been terrified to play outside her own home after being sent to the E.R. and continuously threatened and hurt,” wrote another biker on Facebook, John R. Spencer.
John R. Spencer / FacebookJohn R. Spencer / Facebook
“Members of a number of chapters from around the area paid a visit to her neighborhood to show that she is not alone and is loved by many. We stood by her and walked her down the street to pay the troubled neighbor boy a visit, and she rode her scooter with pride along side us saying ‘I’m not scared anymore’ with a big smile on her face,” Spencer said.
John R. Spencer / Facebook
“We will continue contact and won’t let her feel the way she did before and be hurt any longer, and hopefully the word will spread and the immature violent, destructive behaviors that surface due to parents that cannot properly raise their children will come to an end,” he continued.
Like Ashley said, thanks to a few bikers, she’s not scared anymore.
Hear Ashley’s adorable words to her biker heroes and see her full story in the video!