Bands used to remember Reagan

When 2-year-old Reagan Williams died from being shaken, her loved ones did not want her to become “just a statistic.”

They decided to channel their grief – and Reagan’s memorial donations – into Reagan’s Rescue, an effort aimed at raising money through the sale of pink and purple bracelets to raise awareness about Shaken Baby Syndrome and help abuse victims.

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This past week, the two sets of grandparents began selling the rubber bracelets stamped with Reagan’s name. The purple signifies the color for domestic violence, and the pink signifies the toddler’s favorite color.

“The swirling (of the colors) is random, so each bracelet is unique,” said Greg Williams, who came up with the fundraising idea. Becky Green came up with the effort’s name.

“It’s a way to honor Reagan,” maternal grandmother Becky Green said of the effort, launched this month by her and her husband, Gary, and Reagan’s paternal grandparents, Greg and Marsha Williams. “Somehow it brings me closer to her. I feel like I’m doing something for her.”

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They also said Reagan’s bracelets have become a family effort, with even the youngest Williams children pitching in to stuff the plastic envelopes holding the wristbands with informational cards.

The children have also spread the word to their friends and classmates.

Through their efforts and those of friends, colleagues and fellow church members, the Williamses, who ordered an initial 1,000 bracelets, estimate they already have raised more than $500.

“It’s really taken off,” Marsha Williams said. “A lot of people will say, ‘I just need five bracelets, but here’s $50.’”

Greg Williams said he was overwhelmed when he sent out an e-mail letting everyone in the Danville School District, where he and his wife work, know about the bracelets.

“When I checked it about 30 minutes later, I had seven or eight messages back from people, not only at Danville High School, but throughout the district, saying they’d like one,” he said, adding they brought tears to his eyes. “And no one says ‘I’d just like a bracelet.’ They say, ‘We’re praying for you. We’re thinking of you.’

“They always include that little extra sentiment and support.”

He hopes he’ll have to order another thousand bracelets soon, then another.

“I’d like it to keep growing … to keep Reagan’s memory alive,” he said. “That may be kind of selfish of us, I suppose. … But I always said (that) I didn’t want Reagan to be a statistic. I wanted her to become a cause. By doing this, she lives on and becomes much bigger than the span of her life.”

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