“No human is that beautiful, and that loving, there’s no way. There’s no words to describe it, Benny was an earth angel,” said Benny Petransky’s aunt, Julianne Petransky.
Family members tell Action News that Benny passed away last Thursday unexpectedly in his parents’ bed when they were unable to wake him.
The loss is even more devastating because family members say there were no indications Benny was anything other than a happy and healthy boy.
“We just know that they did find an infection in his stomach and it went to his brain, and again, we don’t know what that virus was. But whatever it was, it got him and took him fast,” said another aunt, Hailey Petransky-Lynch.
Looking for ways to cope and support Benny’s parents, Eric and Natalie, his family came up with a hashtag: #BennysBlueLights.
“Let’s light up blue for Benny. That way, Eric and Natalie, when they’re just walking around, can see that there are others grieving not for us but with us,” said Julianne Petransky.
The idea quickly spread across Delaware County. Homes and businesses across the community are hanging blue lights, switching out light bulbs on porches, and putting lights in yards for the little boy.