As for the shopping spree, he did let his daughter participate to some degree.
The bully’s father speaking of his daughter said, “My daughter was upset, especially because she is into fashion.”
According to Randy, he let his daughter join him and Ryan on the shopping spree, but only to help Ryan pick out new clothes for herself.
And his timing was impeccable. Ryan had just lost three relatives, including her dad, granddad, and aunt. In addition to the losses, Ryan was also suffering from stress-related non-epileptic seizures.
Speaking about the bullying she experienced, Ryan said, “It was really sad for me because I had lost my grandpa, father, and aunt, and it really took me deep down in my depression.”
Both families were interviewed on GMA3.
https://youtu.be/LL7mHzp3nR4
Randy, himself, was reportedly overwhelmed by the response he saw from the community. He just did it to help his daughter to learn how to treat others. He said, “I didn’t expect for this to get big,” and explained he was happy for the publicity if it means other parents learn from it.
“As parents, we have to take responsibility for what our children do. We can teach our children,” Randy said when featured on GMA3, “But when they go and are around other children, they can veer off a little bit.”
Randy encouraged other parents to take action, “and be the parent and not the friend.”
According to Ryan’s mother, the two girls are now getting along. “They’re cool now,” she said.
In the interview, Re’Onna shared that she had learned from the experience, and she now had empathy for Ryan. She said that even though she was initially mad that her dad gave away her shopping spree, she thought, “I’m glad I did this because she really needed the help.”