I have an essay to share that was written by a cheerleader that I have become very attached to over the years. This young lady is amazing, thoughtful and super loving. I feel honored by this essay and love this young lady beyond words. Thank you Ryannon Starkey you are truly an angel! Make sure you all have a box of tissues ready, believe me you will need them!!! This is an essay she wrote for school. Heres my essay I was telling you about: Since sixth grade, I have been an active participant in a competitive cheerleading program. Over the years, I have developed unbreakable bonds with both my teammates and also with my dedicated coaches. Just recently I received the devastating news that one of my coaches had been diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. I was immediately overwhelmed with distraught. Cancer has affected my family previously. When my mother was seven years old, she was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer that affected her kidneys. Thankfully, she has now been in remission for over 31 years. However, this is not the case for my cheerleading coach, Janice. Janice is the most kind-hearted woman that I know; she would do nearly anything for anyone without hesitation. Unfortunately, I felt helpless in this situation because I am only 16, and I thought that there wasnt much that I could do to help Janice and her family. I called her and explained to her how sorry that I am that she has to endure such awful fate and that I would be willing to do anything to help, but I knew that wasnt going to be enough. The financial burden that Janice and her family would have to bare in the upcoming year was going to be borderline unmanageable. I began pondering about other ways that I could help Janice. I came up with the idea of designing a t-shirt and selling them to Janices family, friends, and co-workers, anyone that would be willing to purchase one. Eventually, I came up with a creative design, which sported the orange ribbon for Leukemia awareness and it read Weve Got Your Back on the rear of the t-shirt. I advertised my idea on the Facebook page that Janices sister had created to keep everyone informed about her condition. Immediately, I was overwhelmed with orders! I created a detailed spread-sheet of everyones names and sizes. Soon enough, I had over 120 shirts ordered! Each shirt was priced at $6.50, but I charged $10.00 a shirt instead. The profits were donated directly to Janice and her family. The process of selling and distributing these shirts was strenuous and difficult; however, when I was able to see everyone, including Janice and her family, sporting the shirts that I had designed at the 2014 American Leukemia Society Light the Night Walk in Syracuse, NY, I felt ecstatic. That evening, I presented Janice and her husband with a money order for over $500.00. The look on their faces read pure appreciation; they were so grateful for what I had done. During the ceremony, I turned to my right to see Janice wearing a Jans Cheer Squad t-shirt and holding up a white lantern in her right hand, indicating that she is a survivor. As a 16 year old girl in high school, I never thought that I could make such a big difference in someones life. Currently, Janice is facing constant chemotherapy at Rosewell Center located in Buffalo, NY, while her husband and their five children remain at home, 2 hours away, constantly worried about their mother. Although $500.00 is never going to cover all of Janices unplanned medical expenses, her husband reassured me that it is definitely a great start. I realized that I am no longer a child just because of my age; being young does not mean that I cannot make an impact. With the unfortunate, yet profound effect that Cancer has had on my personal life, and in the lives of those I care for and love, I hope that one day I can take the knowledge I gain as a mathematics or statistics major and contribute in some way to finding a cure. If not, I hope that I can at the very least continue to improve the lives of those already battling with cancer and its devastating effects on loved ones and their families.
Posted on: Tue, 25 Nov 2014 22:35:04 +0000
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