Eighth Grader's Birthday Benefits Fallen Officers

MIAMI (CBS4) - Kristina Hudak turned 14 Saturday and celebrated with a big bash at her home.  Unlike many eight graders who might want clothes or gift cards or iPhone accessories for their birthday, Kristina asked her friends for only one thing:  donations to the families of Miami-Dade police officers Roger Castillo and Amanda Haworth who were killed in the line of duty January 20th.

Kristina watched the memorial service for the slain officers on television and was moved to act.

"As I was watching the memorial I was really touched, and I felt helpless and felt I needed to do something for these families," Kristina told CBS4's Gary Nelson Monday.  "Knowing what they did - the sacrifice they made for us - is huge, and I really wanted to thank them."

Kristina's father, Ed, is a member of the Coral Gables police force and her mother, Alina, is an Assistant Miami-Dade County Manager who works closely with the police department.

But Kristina, a student at Ephipany Catholic School, decided on her own to make her birthday party a fundraiser for the slain officers' families.  She said her heart broke for the officers' four children, left without their parents.

"My mom and my dad are always here for me, and knowing that they lost their mom and their dad is just horrible," Kristina said.

Kristina's friends and classmates danced the night away Saturday and left a pile of checks to the PBA's Love Fund and the Police Officers' Assistance Trust which have established accounts to benefit Officer Castillo's wife, Debbie, and their three boys, and Officer Haworth's 13 year-old son.  Some checks were for $15, several were for $100 or more, many were somewhere in-between.

"We got more than $3,000, and some of my friends said they will give me more checks this week," Kristina said.

Kristina did not seek publicity for her selfless birthday party.  CBS4 News learned of it only because the son of Peter McCoy, a director for WFOR-TV, was among the invitees.

Kristina's mother said the fundraising element of the party was about honoring the service and sacrifice of the fallen police officers, and that Kristina and the family did not expect it to become a news story or focus of attention.

Still, Alina Hudak's eyes welled as she spoke of her daughter.

"She is so special, and I just want to cry.  She's a great kid and I'm really very proud of her," Alina Hudak said.