An Ohio family put up signs explaining the rare disorders their 4-month-old son was suffering from and asked for donations to help.
Three of their signs had signs put next to them with a message that shocked and angered them.
"Stop asking for money. Let the baby die. It's called Darwinism. Happy Holidays," the signs read, WTVG reported.
"I came out. I saw it. Immediately took the one down. There were other ones that were up, but somebody, some other good Samaritans kicked them down," KC Ahlers, of Toledo, told the television station.
Randy James Ahlers, or "RJ," has struggled since birth. He was diagnosed with agenesis of the corpus callosum and mosaic trisomy 9. The first disorder is characterized by partial or complete absence of the part of the brain that connects the two cerebral hemispheres. The second syndrome is a rare chromosomal disorder, where the entire ninth chromosome appears three times, rather than twice, in some cells of the body.
Family members were told that only 50 percent of babies born with mosaic trisomy 9 lived to the age of 2, WJW reported.
In October, KC Ahlers and his wife, Angel Ahlers, hosted a superhero-themed fundraiser and raised about $4,000, WTVG reported.
"I was actually very impressed and touched by the outpouring of love that the Toledo community, our fellow Toledoans, showed us," KC Ahlers told the television station.
The money went toward an expensive genetic test, KC Ahlers told WTVG. Encouraged by the response, the Ahler family put up six signs around the Franklin Park Mall, sharing their son's disorders and explaining how people can help by donating.
The Darwin-like signs put up in response have upset the family, but KC Ahler said they will rise above it.
Already, the Ahlers are planning a Dec. 15 fundraiser to defray medical bills. A GoFundMe page has been set up to help with expenses, WJW reported.
"We want to raise our son to not reciprocate hatred. We want to battle hatred with love," KC Ahlers told WTVG. "So we obviously know somebody that did this is disturbed, and we hope they get help. But we're going to keep taking your signs down as we see them because this town doesn't need hatred. This town needs love."
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