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Students earn tip of the hat for good cause
(by Sue Hoffman - October 01, 2008)
Students earn tip of the hat for good cause
By SUE HOFFMAN
Hats are generally off at school. However, students at Gurney Elementary School in South Russell, as well as the middle and intermediate schools in Chagrin Falls, were allowed to wear their hats one day last week, all for a good cause.
They were participating in Hats on Day, a national event scheduled Sept. 19 during Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. With a $2 donation to the Foundation for Children with Cancer, students throughout the schools were allowed to keep their favorite hats on all day.
The money goes toward supporting families dealing with the overwhelming costs of childhood cancer, according to school officials.
For Gurney School students, the need to support families with cancer and find a cure for the disease has struck close to home. Third-grader Quinn Clarke has been fighting the disease, and his classmates in Brad Jones' class have rallied around him.
Wearing hats ranging from Cleveland Indians and Ohio State Buckeyes baseball caps to a magician's hat and fashion wear, they surrounded Quinn, who donned his favorite Wolverine headgear. All wore their "Hats on Day" stickers from the Foundation for Children with Cancer.
"There are a lot of people in the world who are battling cancer," said Cole Newbauer, with his black top hat.
"We're raising money to find a cure for cancer, so that when someone has cancer, it will just go away," said Catie Beg, wearing her Santa's hat.
In addition to bringing in their own dollars, the class members made posters to promote the fund-raiser and gave each teacher in the school an envelope for the collection. They also collected and counted up the donations, a task that fit in with both their math studies and their desire to help.
At the end of the day, they had collected $2,351, Mr. Jones reported.
After successfully battling the disease as a toddler, Quinn was diagnosed last spring with neurofibrosarcoma, a malignancy of the peripheral nerve sheath, Gurney School Principal Rachel Jones said.
"His family is working with many great doctors to provide the best treatment plan for him. In the meantime, his Gurney classmates ride the elevator with him, run for him in kickball games, carry his lunch so he can use his cane and more," Dr. Jones said. "It's amazing to see the combination of empathy and spirited support these young children have in them."
Mr. Jones said his students also use antibacterial wipes regularly to help stay healthy and avoid spreading germs to Quinn.
"We don't want him to get sick," third-grader Zoe Vinci said.
"If we have a cold, we move our desk around," classmate Rachel Larkin said.
The students said they also try to be careful not to bump into Quinn or hurt him.
Hats on Day was founded in 1995 by four sixth-graders in St. Louis to show support and raise funds for a classmate with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Their friend died, but the founders continued Hats on Day in his memory. Their aim was to create awareness about children undergoing chemotherapy and related issues like hair loss, illness and absences from school.
From 1995 to 2008, the fund-raiser has grown from just a few participating schools to schools across the country, according to the Foundation for Children with Cancer. "The funds raised are used to make young cancer patients' daily lives more comfortable as they deal with this disease. When you participate in Hats on Day, you make life happier for children with cancer and show compassion for the many difficulties young cancer patients face."
Hats on Day has raised over $700,000 in the past 10 years.
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