Rigby students create chemotherapy kits for cancer patients

Valentine’s Day is less than two weeks away so it’s about that time to get your sweetheart something special. But one classroom at Farnsworth Elementary School in Rigby is doing something special for children with cancer — making chemotherapy-kits.

The students and the school have been gathering hand sanitizers, toothpaste and brushes, puzzle books, and even hats to put inside of the kits. The classroom’s goal was to make about 60 kits, but the students can make about 150 of them with the supplies they have right now.

The inspiration to do this project came from a young boy named Lucas, who was a former classmate.

“One of our moms came into the school worried about her son. And later, we found out that her son, Lucas, actually did have brain cancer. And ever since then our hearts we’re kind of open to their family. This year I’m blessed enough to have the class who — Lucas would be in their class right now, with this class. So, we try to think of them as much as we can throughout our year and we thought this was another way we could give back to those who are as strong as Lucas is,” said teacher Jennifer Mumby.

Mumby’s class celebrate special occasions a little differently. Instead of throwing classroom parties, Mumby has her students do service projects.

“Do something to give back. I told them that school is a privilege and that there are many students out there — some in our own country, but in other countries — that aren’t blessed enough to go to school. So at least some time during that day — whatever the holiday is — I like us as a class, typically, to come up with some service project that we can do to give back,” Mumby said.

So for Valentine’s Day, her students are gathering donations and putting them into kits for children with cancer.
“We made chemotherapy kits for kids who have cancer. So, we put some stuff in them like hand sanitizer and lotion and notebooks,” said 5th grade student Adam Harris.

“Well my teacher pretty much put it on Facebook and like, people shared it. And people would, like, bring in stuff to the school and then they would bring it to us. Or sometimes we would, like, bring in stuff,” said student Keisha Kearsley.

The students also wrote journal entries for each bag.

“We got journals and then we wrote what we had as a little quote. And then we put it in there and then we made sure that we were thinking about them while they were in treatment. They can like flip through them and, like, see and read the notes again so it can warm their hearts and everything,” said student Makenzie Allen.

Something Mumby said was most likely the best writing that has come from these kids.

Hoping the kits will bring the children with cancer joy, Tribe 213 will donate all of the kits around Valentine’s Day. The class will donate the kits to the Teton Cancer Institute in Rexburg and Idaho Falls. If they get more donations, they will give kits to as many surrounding hospitals and cancer centers as possible.

You can donate the following list to the front desk at Farnsworth Elementary School in Rigby by Feb. 10.

Toothpaste Toothbrushes Wool/knitted beanies Pens Coloring tools Puzzle books Hand sanitizers Chapstick Candy Small lotions Tissues Notebooks

Current list of donators:

Rigby Pay it Forward Townsquare Dental Rose Mark Women’s Care Aspen Orthodontics Dansie Dental Super 8