Hey all, I seldom ask for anything from my OKCTalk 'family' but I am asking now for you all to please help me out with this project. My cousin Dustin is the driving force behind this campaign to bring awareness of child abuse and the problems facing the foster care system. Read the story of this little abused child and please find it in your heart to help out in any way you can.. thank you in advance.

Home (http://changeonechild.com) (Change One Child Link)

(The auction of the Sooner Football has ended but donations can still be made and are much appreciated!)


www.myspace.com/changeonechild (http://www.myspace.com/changeonechild)



This is the current promotion through Bricktown Brewery:

Change One Child has teamed up with Box Talent and THE Bricktown Brewery to bring you The Ultimate Bricktown Experience.

Starting today, Saturday, January 6th, we will begin this partnership by giving away a ONE YEAR PASS to the Bricktown Brewery worth $1000!!!!! The prize is valued at $1000 (Per David Box & Box Talent). It gives you entry to the upstairs of the Brewery on Friday & Saturday nights.


For each $5 donation made at Home (http://www.changeonechild.com) (Change One Child) you will be entered into a drawing that will take place February 28th, 2007. Remember, for EVERY $5, you get an entry. (i.e. if you donate $50, you will have 10 entries)

Keep in mind that not only do you have this opportunity to receive a one year pass, every cent of these donations go to the college fund of the abused child that Change One Child is centered around.

PLEASE HELP US MAKE A DIFFERENCE.

For more information please email me at dustinbailey@changeonechild.com

Dustin Bailey

*DISCLAIMER* This pass excludes all special concerts (headline shows) and holiday events.

"A hundred years from now it will not matter what my bank account was,the sort of house I lived in, or the kind of car I drove, but the world may be different because I was important in the life of a child"

I have been following this story and it is so unimaginable and so heartbreaking, it is nearly impossible to read but I'm outraged that the 'mom' in this case got the sentence she did for what she did to this poor baby. In my mind, this child is scarred for life, he will never be able to relate to people or trust anyone. How could he when the only people he loved treated him this way?

Do you think justice is served or should it have been a longer sentence?

There is a lot of outrage about this case. I found a lot of info on the net and a few places where this child can be taken care of financially... through donations. The cause I am interested in is setting up a college fund for this boy to provide for him for his future.

"This is the story of a four year old boy who lived and almost died in the small town of Braggs, Oklahoma. It is a story that has made street tough cops cry. It is a story that makes decent people enraged. It is a story that shocks the average person to their very core. It is the story of a little boy allegedly, beaten, bound, locked in a closet, induced to drink rubbing alcohol and fed a diet that at times consisted of a single cup of ramen noodles each day.

It is a story that will break your heart and leave you questioning how could anyone be so cruel to another human being, let alone their own child. But more than anything else it is a story of survival against almost impossible odds and in a house of unimaginable horrors."

Bubbaworld - The Boy In The Closet (http://www.bubbaworld.com/boyincloset.html)
On December 11, 2006 Melanie Smith cried when she appeared before District Judge Thomas Alford for formal sentencing and the judge told her in reference to her earlier statements that she tried her best as a parent:

The photos of this child cause me to question your statements. When a person brings a child into this world it comes with an obligation. Children cannot protect themselves. It's the most fundamental right as a parent to protect their child.

The judge sentenced Melanie Smith to a 12 year prison term on her conviction for child neglect and four years on her conviction for child endangerment, ordering the sentences be served consecutively. In setting these sentences the judge followed the recommendation of the jury which convicted Smith in November.
After the sentencing hearing District Attorney John David Luton said:

She only cares about herself. She starts to cry when it's about her. The jury and judge saw that.

Smith's attorney, R. Jay Cook, said he planned to appeal.


Commentary and Opinion From the Editor

Not only did the jury and judge see through Melanie Smith's claims of trying her best as a parent, practically everyone that has heard of this shocking case realizes that Melanie Smith is a monster that should be removed from society for the longest period permitted by law.

If ever there was an example of a absolutely worthless parent and arguably an absolutely worthless human being, Melanie Smith is the perfect example. Smith who had a new born taken from her in Texas when the infant tested positive at birth for cocaine and marijuana should have been sentenced to life in prison. However, Judge Alford followed the jury's recommendation and we must respect the judge's decision.
Under Oklahoma law, Smith will be required to serve at least 85 percent of her sentence before becoming eligible for parole. This means she will spend just over thirteen and a half years in prison at the minimum. Her son will be 17 or 18 years old and able to defend himself before this monster is released from prison and that is good since it appears that Melanie Smith spent most of his young life either neglecting or outright trying to kill him.

Those of us that believe there is a God, a Heaven and a Hell can take some comfort in the belief that there is a special place in Hell for the likes of Melanie Smith.

One monster down and three to go...

You can help here:

Home (http://www.changeonechild.com)