Kissing a pig for a cause

Mark Maynard/The Independent

Sandy Hook May 21, 2008 11:41 pm

— The students at Isonville Elementary School saw firsthand the effects cancer can have on someone.
And they decided to do something about it.
The small school raised $3,047 for the American Cancer Society, mostly from loose change gathered since September.
Rebecca Martin, a second-grade teacher at the school, was diagnosed with ovarian cancer last May. She had surgery and chemotherapy but, remarkably, never missed a day of teaching.
She promised to dye her hair blue when the fundraiser reached $1,000, which it did. Martin’s battle with cancer raised awareness among the students. She dyed her hair and kept it that way “for a couple of days.” The dye stayed in a little longer than she thought, but it didn’t bother her since it was for a good cause.
“A lot of them had never known anyone who had cancer,” she said. “I wanted them to know I got cancer and I survived. Don’t feel bad for Mrs. Martin. I wanted them to see something positive.”
Martin said she was never sick and only found out about the cancer through a regular checkup. It was in Stage I and was treatable, she said.
“I really believe in God and that God takes care of us,” Martin said.
At Relay for Life Day at the school on Friday, the 150 students presented the ACS with money. They had raised $1,060 in mostly pennies, collected another $1,200 on Friday and turned in a grand total of $2,900.
There were several activities at the school that day. One of the crowd pleasers was the Kiss the Pig contest. Martin, fourth-grader Angie Vanhoose and Principal Felicia Dickerson agreed to kiss the pig if the students reached the goal of more than $1,000.
“It’s really amazing what these students have been able to do,” Martin said. “We’re not a big school, only about 150 (students). The kids had a lot of fun raising the money.”
They’ve also had a scarf and hat drive to benefit the Lexington Children’s Clinic.
Martin has two children of her own — a daughter, Natalie, 10, and a son, Nicholas, 2. Martin said she was feeling fine and enjoying her family and teaching. She is married to Anthony Martin.
“What we’ve been able to do is raise their awareness about cancer,” she said. “They saw the firsthand effects cancer had on me.”
MARK MAYNARD can be reached at mmaynard@dailyindependent.com or (606) 326-2648.