Large numbers of people are lending support to Karen Klein, an upstate New York, school bus monitor, following a bullying incident that went viral. The video, originally taped by one of the bullies, was posted online, showing ten minutes of the 68-year-old being verbally abused by students.
"I saw the video and really felt for Karen," said Max Sidorov, who set up the site where donations are being collected, with bullying from when I was young and what they were doing to her was just heartbreaking. The best thing I could think to do was start a fundraiser to send her on vacation."
Indiegogo.com is the website where funds are being collected in support of Klein and since Thursday, the donated figure has reached over $150,000, far beyond the initial goal of only $5,000.
"It's just huge," Sidorov said. "I thought it would get a few thousand dollars, maybe. But maybe she could retire on this."
Klein has worked as a bus monitor for three years and before that she was a careered bus driver for 20 years.
Over 1 million viewers have seen the video that shows Klein being harassed by students coming from the Athena Middle School in Greece, N.Y.
Students yelled inappropriate comments to her such as threats to urinate on her house door, ejaculate in her mouth, and rob her home. They accused her several times of wanting to rape students, pinched her stomach while calling it flab, and even brought her to tears.
Another comment that proved to be most disturbing and really hit home for Klein is when a student told her that her family should kill themselves. Klein told ABC affiliate WHAM in Rochester that this comment hurt the most, as her oldest son committed suicide just 10 years prior.
Klein reported to ABC News that she has no plans of leaving her job as a bus monitor.
"That's not like me," she said. "I'm not a real vindictive person. I just know I want something to happen to make them [the students] realize what they did."
Greece police are investigating the incident and have interviewed the students involved.
School district officials say that disciplinary actions will be taken in response to the students' behavior.
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