Stay positive. You can do it. Be the bravest you can be. 

Penned in colorful ink by the kids of the Sullivan West KC Club, these are the sorts of messages that cover the bags headed for local oncologists’ offices. 

KC stands for “Kindness and Compassion,” club advisor Tara Brey explained as her group of fourth and fifth grade students prepped to fill the bags to the brim with goodies meant to brighten the days of local residents fighting cancer. 

The club started at Sullivan West Elementary a decade ago as part of the district’s commitment to Rachel’s Challenge, a non-profit that works to fight bullying and build positive school cultures around the country. 

The non-profit was named for Rachel Joy Scott, one of the teenagers shot and killed at the tragic Columbine, Colorado school shooting in 1999, and Sullivan West has taken up its mantle to encourage students to think of and do for others. 

That’s resulted in countless efforts from the kids in Brey’s group over the years, from collecting items for local animal shelters to organizing food drives to replenish local pantries. 

Creating bags for cancer patients was an idea that hit close to home for Brey and many of her students. It’s estimated by the American Cancer Society that 1.9 million Americans are diagnosed with some form of the disease each year, and each of those people has family and friends who are affected in their own way — Brey’s students among them. Some have lost grandparents to the disease, some have even lost parents. 

Brey said she presented the idea to her students, who discussed it as a group and agreed this was an important way to help their own community.

From there, they turned to the community, asking for donations of items that could be used by patients during their lengthy chemotherapy treatments. The response, Brey said, was nothing short of incredible. 

Donations came in loads, with a member of the Good Housekeeping staff donating dozens of copies of the magazine’s latest issue, residents donating brand-new blankets and hundreds of Chap-sticks and so much more. 

While the goal had been for each student to fill one bag, most of the 23 kids in the club were able to load two, with items still left over to be taken by Brey to local oncologist offices. 

Along with playing cards, snacks, coloring books and other items for the patients is a special message from the kids of the Kindness and Compassion Club: “We wanted to give you things that you may be able to find comfort in while you are receiving your treatments. Even though we do not know you personally, we still want you to know how strong and important you are to the people in your lives. You got this! Best wishes for now and always.”