Students Rally Around Elementary Teacher With Colon Cancer
KELLER (CBSDFW.COM) - How do you react when someone you care about has cancer?
It's a tough question for many adults, but for some 4th graders in Keller, the answer seemed easy.
Ten-year-olds, Nadia Schepers and Trinity Smith, adore their math and science teacher, Jennifer Gottleber.
"She makes me feel like I'm not exactly messing up, I just need to fix something," explains Trinity.
"It's just exciting to see that, the light bulbs going off in the classroom," said Gottleber.
But, Gottleber hasn't been in the classroom at Keller-Harvel Elementary for weeks.
"It was the middle of March when I got the diagnosis of colon cancer," she said.
The school sent home a letter to parents, who passed the news on to her students.
"I was really shocked…She never acted like it. She never acted like she was in pain," said Nadia.
"It was tough trying to keep going. Everybody was like, 'Do we really got to go to school tomorrow?" said Trinity.
Instead of losing hope, the girls, along with Nadia's siblings and their classmates, have started selling $1 bracelets to raise funds for Gottleber's medical expenses.
"A lot of people at school will say I'll give you twenty dollars but I don't want any change back," said Tatiana Scheppers, 9.
"A lot of people, they might just look down at it and probably just pray for her," said Nadia, of the decisions to use bracelets.
"It's just so heart-touching. I can't even think – I mean I didn't even think they would do anything like that. It's really a sweet gesture that they would do something like that," said Gottleber.
The lesson, this time, is one the kids have taught her – the meaning a small act of kindness can have for someone in need.
"Even if you think it's just a small gesture – a card or just a smile or a hug - just do it. Because it means a lot more to that person than they probably think it does," said Gottleber.
Her students will be selling their bracelets this Tuesday at Chick-Fil-A on Keller Parkway in Keller from 5pm to 8pm. Chick-Fil-A will also be donating a portion of its profit made during those hours.
