American high school football player Chris Kuykendall, 16, was bullied as a child. So when he heard about a five-year-old who was bullied so badly that he vomited before going to school every morning, Chris knew he had to intervene.
Today, Chris is a popular football player and his days of being bullied are far behind him. But he’s never forgetten how it felt to be bullied at school, and indeed, the experience left a scar in his heart.
Hearing about a little boy who was the victim of bullying brought back memories for Chris, and so he decided to make a difference.
The boy was only five years old, but still, the thought of going to school was so nerve-racking, he vomited every day.
“It just hit home. I remember how I felt when I was getting bullied. It just fired me up, and I just wanted to change that right then and there. I didn’t want him to wake up another day feeling like he didn’t need to go to school,” Chris said.
Since he was a popular football player, Chris knew that younger students at the school looked up to him. He decided to use his popularity to conteract the bully. And he invited the little boy to lunch in the school cafeteria.
As soon as the bullies saw that the boy was friends with Chris, they stopped bullying him.
When Chris’ friend Brevin saw what Chris had done, he wanted to help, too. And the two football players realized that they could help more children by visiting schools and becoming friends with kids who were bullied.
Together they created an organization called Eagle Buddies, matching high school athletes with kids who are bullied in school.
Watch Chris and Brevin explain Eagle Buddies here:
What a great program! Seeing what Chris and Brevin do for these children makes me so happy! More people should take after them, because together we can teach children that bullying is never okay!
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