Oakland Academy students donate to Community Cancer Network

LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Oakland Academy students raised $300 which they donated Thursday to the Community Cancer Network in honor of their beloved front office worker, Gail McCormick, who is battling breast cancer for the second time.

Oakland Academy is an extension of Lafayette Jefferson High School and is home to 60 students who “deserve a second chance,” Principal Kathryn Parthun said.

Each year, around the holidays, the students gather in one room for a traditional holiday meal and celebration at school.

“A lot of these students do not have what most would consider a ‘traditional’ holiday,” Parthun said. “So we do our best to fill the table with as many staple food items and treats, that way they can still have the sense of a traditional celebration.”

This year, students invited Community Cancer Network’s Founder, Faye Cole, to attend their celebration and accept the $300 donation on behalf of the network.

“This money can help so many people struggling in our community. Thank you,” Cole said to the students. “Please remember that everything you have done is so important and community is what keeps us all going. God bless each one of you that made all of this possible.”

Cole sat among the students during lunch. She took a particular liking to sophomore Carlos Gaeta who chose to only eat Texas Roadhouse rolls. Even when students were dismissed from eating to go watch a movie or make a craft, Gaeta stayed at his table munching on rolls.

“I always go for the bread or the fries,” he said. “They are just so good.”

Food items served included ham, turkey, mashed potatoes, green beans and generous donations from local restaurants, including Texas Roadhouse rolls and butter, Chick-Fil-A drinks, Olive Garden salad, and other side items from Revolution Barbecue and KFC.

Another student, freshman Jadelynn Walters, took a liking to the mashed potatoes. Solely filling her plate with them and drizzling gravy on top. She and her best friend, Daisy Gullien, spent the afternoon talking and posing for silly photos.

What lies beneath the Oakland holiday celebration

Faye Cole is a longtime friend of Gail McCormick, who was brought to tears when she learned that the students initially wanted to put the money they raised toward purchasing a wig for her, due to her hair loss from chemo-therapy. She’d already received a wig from the Community Cancer Network and suggested the students donate the money there, instead, she said.

“It only took 20 minutes after my cancer announcement, and they were coming up to me giving me hugs and notes that said, ‘You’ve got this,’ and things like that,” McCormick said, holding back tears. “These kids are really great kids.”

McCormick noted that each year around the holidays Oakland Academy gives out hoodies to each student because most do not have an actual winter coat.

“Yet, they (the students) are so warming,” she said. “I wish more people could see what goes on inside of these doors.”

During Thursday’s holiday celebration, students chose what they wanted to eat, which crafts and activities they wanted to participate in and with whom they sat next to. Oakland staff were dressed in holiday attire to serve food and chat with students.

Sommer Howey Beard, better known as “Ms. B,” is the Jobs for America’s Graduates (JAG) teacher at Oakland, and she, too, was brought to tears by a gift given to her from student Kenesha Johnson.

The JAG program is available to junior and senior students and aims to help find an entry-level job leading to a career and/or postsecondary education, according to the Indiana government webpage.

The program gives students credit towards graduation and also offers them the opportunity to expand their horizons through business contacts, unpaid and paid internships, guest speakers, mentors and community service opportunities.

Currently, Emma Burnaska-Mancina is the Oakland Academy president for the Career Association.

Burnaska-Mancina is a junior who participates in community service hours and also serves as the “Oakland intern,” where she can earn money for duties she does at the school.

“She doesn’t like to be the center of attention, but she’s absolutely rocking it,” Ms. B said.

What makes Oakland special

Parthun treats the students as unique individuals, acknowledging their different interests, desires and qualities.

When lunch was over, she could be heard on the microphone saying, “I know a lot of you are not used to coming in here and eating lunch all together. I know that can be pretty overwhelming. So, I appreciate your flexibility.”

Parthun formerly worked as the social emotional learning director at Lafayette School Corp. before accepting the role of principal at Oakland.

“Her (Parthun’s) theory is that everyone needs to feel safe here, and then they can feel safe to learn,” McCormick said.

Last May, Oakland Academy students raised money through various fundraisers to purchase a school therapy dog. The 3-year-old golden retriever named Fawn usually spends her days in the English classroom or the “Amygdala Reset Room,” where students can go when they need a mental break, Parthun said.

“Fawn is more certified than a therapy dog, but less certified than a service dog,” she said. “She’s trained to be in facilities like ours and loves to love on everyone.”

This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: Lafayette's Oakland Academy students raise $300 to fight cancer