Helping one of their own

Meadow Ridge students walk to aid classmate

Meadow Ridge Elementary School students, teachers and parents wore a path around the school June 16 as they braved the heat on their feet for an hour for the benefit of one of their suffering own.

The Meadow Ridge community was making laps around the school for first-grader Anthony Rupan, 7, who has been battling a brain tumor for the last two months. Each lap earned money for the student’s medical bills, stemming from pledges solicited by the walking supporters.

“I’m so happy that everybody misses him, and he has so many friends here,” said Zeidy Rupan, Anthony’s mother, at the event.

The student hasn’t been in class much since April 4, when he was taken to the doctor with a headache. Tests later revealed a malignant brain tumor and Rupan was soon ushered into surgery. After more than a month in the hospital and weeks of radiation and chemotherapy, he’s recovering. But his mother had to quit her job to take care of him, and the bills keep adding up.

That’s where Meadow Ridge came in.

“We decided to do this as an end-of-the-year community building opportunity to help one of our own,” said Principal Bonnie Wong.

The principal said the whole school community helped organize the Walk-a-thon for Rupan. Having only collected some of the proceeds the day of the event, she reported the amount had already surpassed the school’s original fundraising goal. And she thinks it will be of benefit to more than just the suffering student and his family.

“We’re trying to educate our kids about the needs of families as well as being compassionate,” Wong said. “We’re really very proud of our kids and our staff for making this a successful event.”

Too weak to walk due to his continuing cancer treatments, Rupan was seated in a wheelchair at the Walk-a-thon. But he was smiling the walkers slapped him fives as they passed him on their way around the school. He even took some laps around himself, pushed by first-grade teacher Lauren Caltrider and accompanied by his classmates.

“I think this is good for the whole school, just coming together on something like this,” Caltrider said.

She said Rupan is an outgoing student who has a lot of friends, and they have kept in touch with him by mail during his absence.

“He’s a kid who loves being at school, so I think he really misses it,” she said.

Rupan recently completed his radiation therapy, but he will continue chemotherapy for another two years, his mother said. To add to Meadow Ridge’s support, call the school at 253-373-7870.