Jennifer Hudson sobs at charity event to mark late nephew's birthday
Oscar winner Jennifer Hudson broke down in tears as she hosted a charity event in her native Chicago, Illinois in honor of her late nephew on Tuesday (14Aug12), the day he would have celebrated his 11th birthday.
Julian King was shot dead by his estranged stepfather William Balfour in 2008 in a horrific triple murder, in which Hudson's mother Darnell Donerson and brother Jason Hudson were also killed at their home in the city.
The Dreamgirls star and her sister Julia, the mother of the tragic
seven year old, set up the Julian King Foundation after his death,
and on Tuesday they hosted the second annual Hatch Day event, named
after a phrase King thought up to celebrate happy occasions.
During the event at the Kroc Community Center, the pair handed out
school supplies to low-income students in Chicago, and Hudson
teared up as she mingled with the youngsters on what Mayor Rahm
Emanuel proclaimed to be Julian King Hatch Day.
During an interview with WGNtv.com, she says, "To be able to turn
such a negative around and make it a positive thing... seeing this
is like 'wow'. What's the point of being who you are if you can't
make a difference? If you can't help someone else?"
Hudson also took to her Twitter.com page to mark the special day,
writing, "Happy 11th birthday to my late nephew Julian King! We
will celebrate u (sic) always! Happy 'Hatch Day' to u all!"
The Julian King Foundation was set up to help underprivileged kids
in the Chicago area.