Hey squash-da-bully nation! I donated money to Oakland Children's hospital and this is what they said in their article :). If you want to go to the article this is the link. Look on page 3.      http://www.childrenshospitalbranches.org/pdf/2013TWIGSQ2.pdf

CHO Patient takes Bullying Seriously

Zayanne (Zay) Rifai is an incredible young woman - perceptive and empathetic beyond her years. Previ- ously hanging out at the hospital for appointments with her doctor, Dr. Bhatia, over a number of years, Zay saw and talked with many sick children in various stages of their illnesses. She saw blind kids, kids in wheelchairs, kids undergoing chemo, kids with special needs, kids who had been abandoned by their parents and were being raised by relatives - the list is, unfortunately, endless.

Zay understood, at the level that only someone who has been bullied could, just how devastating it was to add bullying to the heap of problems these kids - and kids in general - were already undergoing. From her perspective, it was cruel, unnecessary and intolerable.

When she first started seeing Dr. Bhatia, at age eight, she took particular note of those children who were receiving chemo treatments - the next four years, Zay don- ated 36 inches of her hair to Locks of Love. She reports that at the time she was being bullied, one day she told the bully’s mom. That mother had the courage to scold her son in front of Zayanne for doing to her what that little boy’s uncle had apparently been doing to him - ridiculing him for one of his physical features. Zay now under-

stood the problem more fully.
So, at age 15, Zay started a company - Fight Your Ignorance,

Zayanne Rifai with her first donation check to CHB, Inc. from her company, Fight Your Ignorance-committe to fightig bullying

LLC. Its mission is simple, and heartwarming: “FYI is commit- ted and focused on exposing ignorance for its negative impact on people. We execute on this mission by manufacturing and promoting trendy apparel featuring messages that call out cer- tain behaviors as socially unacceptable.”

She chose CHB, Inc. as the recipient of some of her profits, primarily as The Branches was started by women, is supported by women and works closely with CHO which has helped generations of kids and their families throughout its 100 years.

FYI tee-sirts - the product Zay is currently selling to raise funds to help with her anti- bullying efforts

Zayanne is 15. She attends Skyline High School in Oakland where she just completed her sophomore year. Her website is www.fightyourignorance.com