Teacher apologizes for misspelling 'Hillary Clinton’ on 11-year-old’s letter

SUNBURY, Pa. – A Pennsylvania middle school teacher has apologized for misspelling Hillary Clinton's name on a letter from one of his students, 11-year-old Mary Reinard.

Mary asked her teacher at Shikellamy Middle School, Benjamin Attinger, for help writing to the former presidential candidate. Attinger addressed the envelope and sent Mary home with it.

Instead of "Hillary," however, Attinger addressed the letter to "Hiliar," according to Mary's parents.

The first thing her mother Shannon thought was, "Where's the 'Y?'" she told WNEP. "Then I'm looking and wait a minute ... I was just (like), 'Are you serious right now?'"

"I thought it was funny until I saw my little girl get upset and start to cry," her father Shawn said.

The Reinards say Hillary Clinton is Mary's idol. Shannon called Shikellamy Middle School about the letter, and the teacher told her he did it as a joke between him and Mary. He later apologized, according to WNEP.

"I'm not going to argue with him," Shannon said. "I'm just going to accept his apology and move on."

After the family's story was published in The Daily Item newspaper and picked up by national outlets, Former First Daughter Chelsea Clinton heard about what happened and reached out through social media. Chelsea told the family where to send Mary's letter, and said she will hand-deliver it to her mom.

"So I've been in contact with Chelsea Clinton and it's unreal," Shannon said.

"I think that's awesome. I think that is the most amazing thing that could have happened," Shawn said.

As for Benjamin Attinger, the teacher who addressed the envelope, the Reinards are not mad.

"I absolutely don't think he should lose his job. He shouldn't get in any trouble. It was an honest mistake, a stupid mistake, one that shouldn't have happened," Shawn said.

Shikellamy School District did not comment and said it's a personnel issue.