I started a secret ‘name change fund’ for my niece because she is being bullied

A grieving woman talks about the fund she set up to help her niece with a much-needed name change.

She explained that she had no choice after her cousin was bullied at school because of her unique name.

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Reddit user New-Fail849 revealed the name in a post.

She explained that tensions arose over her name choice when her younger sister Ramona announced she was having a child.

“Now I love my younger sister, and we’ve always gotten along really well. However, she’s always been into nerdy pop culture; she plays D&D weekly, loves Marvel movies, and is obsessed with fantasy novels,” she said.

“Her favorite, as you may have guessed, is The Wheel of Time series. Now, I know next to nothing about this series, but I knew enough to know that Egwene al’Vere was not a name she came up with herself.

“When she announced that name, there was some confusion and disapproval within the family, but no one strongly opposed it.”

She explained that she felt the responsibility rested on her shoulders.

“I was given that honor. I tried to approach the subject calmly. I even gave her the ‘You’re naming a human being’ speech, but she said she knew best.

“After a short conversation, I told her straight out that her daughter was being bullied.”

Despite her best efforts, Ramona refused to listen to her case.

“She got angry with me and I didn’t pursue it further because I could see she didn’t want to give in,” she said.

Years later, her cousin, nicknamed “Gwen,” told her about the problems at school.

“She’s been vocal lately about how much she hates her name. The teachers at school always say it wrong and her classmates tease her all the time,” the Redditor wrote.

“It doesn’t help that Ramona calls her Egwene al’Vere, and not just Egwene or Gwen, which she much prefers.”

The name even caused internal quarrels between mother and daughter.

I told her that if she had thought more carefully about her child’s name, she wouldn’t have ended up in this situation.

Redditor New-Fail849

“Ramona has been trying to express that Egwene doesn’t want to talk about her name, and she doesn’t know what to do with it,” she said.

“I said sarcastically, ‘If only someone had warned you.’ She asked me what I meant. I said she had given her daughter a stupid name and now she has to face the consequences.

“She said she didn’t know why she came to me in the first place, and she should have known I was just going to be an a**hole. I told her if she had thought about her child’s name more carefully, she wouldn’t be in this situation.”

In an update, the Redditor added that she had started a fund for her niece’s name change, thanks to suggestions from commenters.

“That’s a kid who’s going to pay to legally change his name when he turns 18,” one user said.

“If you want to be a good aunt, I would look at [it]get all the information and paperwork, and the money for it before her 18th birthday.”

“I understand that she likes a name from a fantasy book/movie or something, but she doesn’t realize the impact that will have on her daughter in the future,” agreed another.

“I bet she changes her name when she turns 18.”

The original poster said she had taken their advice to heart.

“Many of you have suggested setting up a fund for a name change if she wants one when she turns 18. I think that’s a great idea,” she said.

“I looked it up and it costs about $80 to file in my state, but I’m sure it’s a lot more.

“I’m going to put aside $200 now and add more if I can. Hopefully it’ll be a nice little something when she turns 18.”