Students Collect Band-Aids for Childhood Cancer Awareness

Three Waukee Community School District students collected over 400 boxes of band-aids in honor of Childhood Cancer Awareness Month this September.

Breslyn Hurt, Ethan Krakau, and Ben Tesene are sixth graders at South Middle School. They are also cancer survivors.

With a mission to educate their peers about the important topic, the students created a presentation sharing childhood cancer facts and highlighting causes such as Dance Marathon, Unravel Iowa, and Kid Cancer Crushers.

As they raised awareness about childhood cancer, Breslyn, Ethan, and Ben collected boxes of band-aids from SMS families. While they accepted all donations, Breslyn explained they wanted to gather a variety of fun styles and colors — from neon to Disney-themed — because hospitals often only have plain band-aids for patients.

“The average childhood cancer patient uses multiple band-aids a week for all their pokes. Some local cancer warriors reported using more than 15 a week,” the students shared in their presentation to the school.

Additionally, the trio encouraged SMS staff and students to wear gold — the official color of childhood cancer awareness — “to support all children who have been diagnosed with cancer, bravely fought cancer, or are currently in treatment of cancer.” The “Go Gold for Pediatric Cancer!” theme was part of the Homecoming Week dress-up days for the school.

On Sept. 30, the final day of the campaign, the students counted 410 boxes of band-aids. They will donate the boxes to Blank Children’s Hospital’s Child Life Program.

We’re proud of the leadership, advocacy, and passion demonstrated by these young students!