By:
Jeffery Kurz | Posted: Wednesday, July 16, 2008 12:00 am
It's been almost a year since Dr. William
Petit Jr. lost his wife and two daughters in a home invasion in
Instead, Petit has supported criminal
justice reform and established a foundation he hopes will honor the memory of
his lost loved ones for many years to come.
A major fundraising effort for the Petit
Family Foundation is set for Sunday. The 5-kilometer road race starts at 9:30
a.m. in the General Electric parking lot at
In the early hours of July 23, 2007,
police say, two paroled convicts took the Petit family
hostage, killing 48-year-old Jennifer Hawke-Petit and daughters Hayley, 17, and
Michaela, 11. William Petit was severely beaten, but
survived.
Joshua Komisarjevsky, 27, of
In the weeks that followed the murders,
letters of support, including unsolicited financial donations, began "streaming
in," said Johanna Petit Chapman, William Petit's sister.
The initial outpouring of support led to
school scholarships and endowed funds to the state chapter of the National MS
Society, Hayley's Hope and Michaela's Miracle Memorial Fund. Those have now been
centralized in the Petit Family Foundation.
"There were so many funds, it was pretty
confusing," Chapman said.
"I think there has been a lot of goodness
and kindness that's come out of a lot of people," Petit observed. "Because,
though there's a lot of evil out there, there is a lot of goodness and kindness
in the world."
Establishing the foundation was initially
the idea of Petit's friends at a golf club, the Country Club in
"People at the club thought it would be a
good way to channel donations and do more and better things," he
said.
"After six months, I could think a
little," Petit said. "I really wanted it to be in perpetuity, to have a
foundation that would keep their memories alive for a long time, hopefully
forever."
The aim is "to perpetuate the idealism
they stood for," he said.
The goals of the foundation are a mirror
of the interests and efforts of the Petit women. A
foundation Web site, www.petitfamilyfoundation.org,
went online this week.
One goal is to support the education of
young people, particularly of women in the sciences. Hayley Petit was going to
attend
Another is to improve the lives of those
affected by
chronic illness. Jennifer Hawke-Petit, who worked
as a registered nurse at
Following in her sister's footsteps,
Michaela Petit had been in the process of organizing her own walk, Michaela's
Miracle.
Such community service efforts were "a big
part of their lives," said Chapman, so establishing the foundation in their
honor "just made sense."
A third goal is to help those affected by
violence.
"I don't think people understand how far,
really, the effects of violence are," Petit said.
This Sunday's road race is labeled "Be the
Change," taken from a quote Michaela Petit had on her Facebook site on the
Internet. It's from an observation by Mohandas Gandhi that "you must be the
change you want to see in the world."
The race was organized by Bob and Gary
Heslin, friends of William Petit's since high school in
"Dr. Petit said to us, 'Please carry on
what these girls started,'" Bob Heslin said.
Chapman said the goal is to make the road
race an annual event. Fundraising efforts have been greatly enhanced by
corporate sponsorship, she said. Two golf tournaments also have raised funds for
the foundation.
There's nearly $500,000 at this point,
Chapman said, and the intent is to provide funding off the interest and maintain
the foundation as a perpetual giver.
"Frankly, it's a lot easier to concentrate
on this stuff than the other," Chapman said.
The response of generosity to the highly
publicized home invasion has been enduring.
"Everybody's looking for a way to do
things," Chapman said. "People are telling me they're more patient with their
children. I know from the mail, that's still coming in from all over the place, that it's still resonating with people. It's an awful
reason."
Bob Heslin said he hopes the road race
will bring people together as well as raise money.
"Our vision was to have this huge party, a
community get-together after the race," he said. Several activities will
accompany the race, including a food court with several
Children under 8 can participate in a
kids' race at 9:15 a.m. The ribbons to be awarded were designed by William
Petit.
In addition to the 3.1-mile run, there is
also a 1.3-mile fitness walk. More information is online at www.petitroadrace.com.
In the past year, laws have been passed in
Another law boosts staffing at criminal
justice agencies. Additional funding expands a global positioning system to
monitor parolees. A new crime of "home invasion" came into effect March
1.
"I think what's happened there has been a
start, but I think there's a long way to go," said William
Petit.
He said he's been bolstered by "an
incredible amount of support" that's come from a variety of sources, including
his family circle, his friends from high school and his college friends from the
Dartmouth class of '78.
Construction is set to begin next month on
"There have been multiple circles of
people who have been incredibly supportive," he said. "They've provided
motivation and a reason to get up some days."
Reporter Jesse Buchanan contributed to
this story.
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