BY SAUNDRA AMRHEIN
The Cincinnati Enquirer
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People walk a "Mile for Kyle" Saturday at West Chester's annual FunFest at McGinnis Park.
(Gary Landers photo)
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UNION TOWNSHIP -- Their feet covered one mile, but their compassion will span a lifetime.
More than 350 people throughout the Tristate turned out Saturday at West Chester's annual FunFest to walk and raise $7,000 for 2-year-old Kyle Hesselbrock, who is dying of Tay-Sachs disease.
Donors bought T-shirts, raffle tickets and greeting cards during the fund-raiser that featured three one-mile walks throughout the day at McGinnis Park in southeast Butler County.
"Mile for Kyle"
Parents and their children crowded the tent near the starting line to meet the blond-haired boy lying peacefully in the arms of his mother, Suzanne Hesselbrock, and other relatives. Then they set out under a cloudless sky for each "Mile for Kyle," which took walkers less than 20 minutes.
But the short jaunt belied its Herculean effect in lifting the spirits of Kyle's relatives, who say the outpouring of help is one of the only things relieving their pain.
"This is just great," Kyle's father, Andy Hesselbrock, said about the turnout. "It helps get the word spread about the disease. Hopefully, they'll find a cure one of these days."
The rare genetic disorder destroys the nervous system in children before they die, usually by age 5.
The Hesselbrocks are sending the money they raise to the National Tay-Sachs and Allied Diseases Association to help find a cure. Despite the prognosis, the Hesselbrocks are cheered by people like Carl and Donna Butler of Harrison.
The Butlers bounded into the tent before the first walk to hand over a cashier's check worth $620.20.
Help from afar
After reading about Kyle in The Cincinnati Enquirer, they raised the money by selling food last month near Columbus at a triathlon qualifying competition for the Olympics. The Butlers got the food from vendors of Remke Markets, where Mrs. Butler works.
"I saw the article in the paper, and my husband was so touched by it he said, "We have to do something,' " Mrs. Butler said.
She was one of the first to cross the finish line, where all walkers received ribbons handed out by Kyle's grandparents, Dick and Claudia Hesselbrock and Spencer and Lana Traub.
Mr. Traub, a code enforcement officer in West Chester, said other checks given Saturday came with addresses from Louisville and Massachusetts.
Parents turn out
Skip McDonald, a photographer from Maine, attended the walk and donated 1,000 greeting cards featuring scenic pictures with biblical inscriptions. He said he read about Kyle while visiting family in Anderson Township and decided to arrange a return trip during the FunFest to help raise $1,500.
"I saw the article and said, "I have to get involved,' " Mr. McDonald said. "It was not just a tap on the shoulder, but a big knock." Since the article's publication Aug. 3, donors have given almost $3,000 to the Kyle Spencer Hesselbrock Fund at Star Bank.
Jenny Angel of West Chester carried her 3-year-old son, Kenny, during the walk as they trailed behind her 5-year-old daughter, Olivia.
She and fellow parents from the West Chester Soccer Club don't know the Hesselbrocks. But they, too, were moved to help out.
"When you have kids and you think about something like that happening to them, to have people show support would be very meaningful."
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