photo by: Rochelle Valverde/Journal-World

Kimberlee Bonura, left, and her mom, Sandra Bethany, stand outside their West Hills neighborhood home on April 26, 2023. Bonura holds a bouquet of flowers someone dropped off at her home.

A Lawrence family has been through a whirlwind of reactions since deciding to paint their home in the West Hills neighborhood purple — first receiving critical anonymous letters from some neighbors and then an outpouring of support from other Lawrence residents.

Attracted by what they perceived as the city’s quirky vibes and welcoming and inclusive nature, the Bonura family, recently retired from the military, decided to move to the city last fall after visiting several cities in the Kansas City metro area.

“Lawrence was so pretty and green, and the university’s here,” Kimberlee Bonura said. “And we came into town and my kids saw the ‘Embrace Inclusion’ flags and they were like, ‘What an amazing place. Can we buy a house here?'”

Bonura’s husband, Michael, recently retired from the military after 25 years of service. They ended up finding a house near the University of Kansas campus, in the West Hills neighborhood, and moved in this past September. Everything they hoped for in the city seemed to be coming to pass: Bonura said her family loves the Lawrence Public Library, the Prairie Park Nature Center and the city’s beautiful green spaces. Her two children, ages 11 and 13, are neurodivergent, and she said everyone they’ve interacted with has been nice and accepting.

But then after they decided, with input from their kids, to paint their house a light lavender color with purple trim, the criticism started to arrive. The house was finished two weeks ago, and the letters, sent anonymously with no return address, began showing up in their mailbox soon after.

One said the consensus among the neighborhood was that the color was garish, tacky and out of place, and that they hoped the family would consider repainting. Another said the colors “cross the line,” again asking for the house to be repainted. Another said reactions from neighbors ranged from “eye-rolling to outright anger, and I have to say that I can’t blame them.”

Finally, on Monday, a fifth letter arrived that contained a printout of an article about a group of neighbors in Washington state who were petitioning their county tax assessor for tax relief under the claim that a purple house in their neighborhood had lowered their property values. Attached to the article was a hand-written sticky note that said the Bonura family’s choice of paint colors was hurting property values and that it would be so much easier if they would “just get rid of the purple and avoid becoming a headline!” The note goes on to say: “Being a good neighbor is much more enjoyable than being a despised neighbor! You are the talk of the neighborhood right now. I don’t think you will enjoy being the talk of the town!”

photo by: contributed

On Monday, the Bonura family received a printout of an article about another purple house, with a sticky note attached.

Bonura said the last letter made her feel the most uncomfortable.

“It makes me feel sad and stressed,” she said. “Is Lawrence the right place for us to make our home?”

Bonura’s mom, Sandra Bethany, 77, retired after a 30-year military career, lives with the family and spends a lot of time outside. After the fifth letter, Bethany said she felt stressed, so much so that she was concerned for her safety and was planning not to spend time out in the front yard.

“That’s when I started getting worried, because I said the tone of this letter is threatening,” Bethany said.

However, after Bethany posted about the situation on the social media site NextDoor, things started to turn around. The post, which includes photos of the five letters and the house, now has around 350 comments, nearly all of them positive. And the show of support from Lawrence residents went well beyond words. People started showing up at the house.

When the first car pulled up and stopped, Bethany said she was nervous, but then the people approached her with smiles.

“They got out and gave me hugs and said we’re glad to see you here,” Bethany said on Wednesday.

photo by: Rochelle Valverde/Journal-World

A sign reading “Kindness Just Because” now stands in the center of what will be a wildflower garden outside the Bonura family home.

Bonura said another person dropped off a bouquet of flowers, neighbors within walking distance (though not her immediate neighbors) came over on foot to share welcoming words, and Kara Lynch dropped off a sign reading “Kindness, Just Because,” which is a tribute project for Lynch’s late son, James, who had the idea for the project but soon after died of an overdose at the age of 23. Bonura said she and Lynch talked and shared a hug, and the sign is now planted in the middle of what will soon be the Bonura family’s wildflower garden.

Standing in her front yard on Wednesday afternoon, where bright-colored tulips were in bloom, inclusion flags hung from the fence and a rainbow banner by the front door welcomed all, Bonura said the overarching message from those stopping by the house in the past few days has been the same.

“This pouring out of: ‘This is not Lawrence,'” Bonura said.

Bonura said the well wishes, house-warming gifts, nice notes and hugs from strangers, plus all the positive comments on social media from people across Lawrence, have affirmed their original reasons for picking the town as the home for their family. She said the outpouring has shown her what she said is “the real Lawrence.”

“Lawrence is certainly being the positive, amazing place we thought when we chose to move here, so that makes us feel really good about the town,” Bonura said.

photo by: contributed

The Bonura’s home is pictured in this contributed photo.

photo by: Rochelle Valverde/Journal-World

A welcoming banner is displayed near the front door of the Bonura home.