That's what happened to Stan Przepiosky, who manages a print shop in Hayward. He printed 5,000 notices and delivered them free to the Hayward Unified School District, which distributed them on its campuses. I have children of my own and thought I was doing the school district a favor. That was a year ago, but the fliers are still circulating in Fremont, Santa Clara, and other South Bay cities. Danbury Hospital, the Connecticut medical facility named on the notice, has been coping with the hoax for years.
People believe what they read and just keep copying and distributing the fliers.
The hospital has no idea how its name got on the flier. It has never had a patient or employee by the name of J. O'Donnell. That's a relief to parents like Patty Lacy of Fremont. Lacy was upset when she read the warning in her son's school newsletter and later at her job site. Her husband assured her it was a hoax, but she checked into it anyway by calling the Hayward print shop and Danbury Hospital.