Jul 28, 2009

Conn. home-invasion survivor faces court ordeal

Another good article covering the recent hearing on the Petit case..

Dr. William Petit speaks outside courthouse

This is a video from outside the New haven Superior Court building where Dr Petit and other members of the Hawke, Petit and Renn families gathered after the day's hearing. Dr Petit had asked to make a statement at the hearing itself but after objections from the defense and subsequent discussions between Judge Damiani the defense and the prosecutor, he did not make the statement.
For this reason he was forced to read only part of the prepared statement outside of the building where a sizable portion of the media had gathered.

Below is a quote taken from his statement that pretty well sums up his message to the court and the state of Connecticut. This man's courage is a great example to all of us: Instead of simply relenting and giving in to the broken and ineffectual justice system that has become the status quo here in Connecticut, he is doing everything in his power to bring attention to the failings where they exist in an effort to replace them with reforms that put the victim first.

"I suggest that our whole system is out of kilter and victims rights are totally abused."

Dr Bill Petit

Jul 19, 2009

Thousands run in Plainville for Petit Family Foundation















Picured above is Dr William Petit Jr, founder of the Petit Family Foundation, the Race day's beneficiary.

The 5k Race-day day in Plainville was a great success and a lot of fun! The event, which was the second of its kind, had an even bigger turnout than last year with an estimated 3000 people attending!

It will likely be an annual tradition for many years to come. Kudos to every volunteer , organizer and every helpful soul that made the day such a success!

Dr. William A. Petit, two years later

This is an interview with Dr William Petit, two years after the crimes that took
his family and inadvertently sparked an en-masse philanthropic movement of sorts here in Connecticut.

You'll see a perfect example of this communal philanthropy in the rapidly approaching "5K Race day" scheduled for this Sunday afternoon in Plainville.
Dr Petit grew up in Plainville and has resided there with his parents since the crimes: His parents have very strong ties to the town and the surrounding communities.

The 5k race is in fact the second of its kind, having proved so successful in its

first launch (in 08) which the founders and organizers set their sites on making it an annual event.

Last July, thousands of people turned out on one of the hottest days of the summer, many of them to run in a substantial foot course, in an effort to show their support for the family and the Petit Family Foundation,
http://www.petitfamilyfoundation.org/ , the nonprofit charity that Dr Petit created in the memory of his wife and daughters, all of whom were very active in volunteer work and community outreach.

The Petit Family Foundation has a broad focus: donated and raised funds from events like the 5K Race- day will go to help victims of violent crime as well as people suffering with chronic illness, such as Multiple Sclerosis . The Petit girls and their mom were very involved with the M.S Foundation beginning when Jennifer Hawke Petit was diagnosed with MS during the mid- nineties.

According to Dr Petit, in the beginning the girls wanted to help their mom they were worried she would die from the disease, but as they grew older their focus became a desire to help anyone who suffered with this challenging and poorly understood disease.


Dr Petit wished to carry on the girls spirit of volunteerism and idealism long after their deaths. It would seem that he has done an excellent job, and helped an awful lot of people in the proccess.

Jul 13, 2009

Road race to benefit Petit Family Foundation

Looks like Race day is upon us - The 2nd Annual Petit Family Foundation 5K
Road race will be held this Sunday. July 19th in Plainville Connecticut!

The Race supports a great cause and promises to be a fun day! Besides the 5k

race and "fitness walk", there are activities and award ceremonies for kids and adults and many refreshments to boot!

Please come and bring your friends and/or family - You can register for either
of the day's races in advance via the Petit family 5k Race day site below, or in person the morning of the race prior to 8;30 AM.

For non- runners and those of us with creaky knees and such, there
is a gentler 'fitness walk" which is great exersize and allows you to take a more active part in the days events.

For those who don't know, The Petit Family Foundation is a locally based non-profit that helps support those affected by violent crime and chronic illness as well as awarding scholarships to deserving young students in the community.

The foundation was formed by Dr William Petit Jr formerly of Cheshire Connecticut in order to
help honor the lives of his wife Jennifer Hawke Petit
and thier two daughters Hayley and Michaela. each of whom were killed in a
home invasion in July 2007. Dr Petit was the sole survivor and he sustained
severe head injuries in the attack.

The crimes deeply affected both the community as well as the entire state at

large. It subsequently prompted many residents to become more involved in
good works, particularly those with human suffering at thier core. The 5k race
day is one such example of this coordinated altruism.

Please come and be a part of this important and far reaching good cause - last year's Race day was a huge success -Thousands turned out on one of the hottest days of the year; Many lives were changed for the better as a result. We hope to make this level of success a yearly tradition.

Further Details of the 5k Raceday event can be found at the Petit Family Foundation Raceday Website here www.petitroadrace.com/index.shtml