At 9:15 a.m. on Tuesday, March 17, 2015, I entered the combined classroom of Morrison Early Learning Program (MELP) and Bi-County Preschool Program at Northside School, 520 N. Genesee Street, Morison, IL. A red-headed colleen with tiny outstretched hand approached. As we shook hands, she asked if I knew what the naughty leprechaun had done to their classroom early in the morning! I listened earnestly as she offered details. This annual Irish “ransacking” is a memory children hold into adulthood; I do. Discovering the outrageous behavior and cleaning up is part of St. Patrick’s Day.
Another special visitor soon entered Mrs. Jenni Williams’s MELP room with her parents, Domini and Jason Buikema. Lilah Buikema, who turned four on February 20, has spent little time with her 19 classmates, since her diagnosis of Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH) in early January. She was reticent to enter, but her peers sat quietly on the alphabet rug, at a comfortable distance, until Lilah felt more comfortable.
LCH is—according to differing medical opinions—either a rare cancer or an immune dysfunction. One child or adult in 200,000 will be affected; it is neither hereditary nor contagious. LCH can damage tissue or cause lesions to form. That results from overproduction of white blood cells, which cluster and build up. There are but three physicians who have expertise in the disease; fortunately, one is in Chicago, IL. Lilah receives chemotherapy every three weeks, so the family is on the tollway often.
In the morning, Mrs. Becky Coons, right, teaches five Bi-County Preschoolers, two of whom showed their food choices in the children’s kitchen area. Coons has crafted her own fundraiser for Lilah: making kitchen “Towels for Trips.” They sell at $10 apiece or $18 a pair. Coons offers a wide variety of designs and takes color requests. She donated $600 to the family and will continue to sell linens to aid the Buikemas.
Northside staff pay $5 on Wednesdays for the privilege of wearing jeans. That income was added to the $1144.44 worth of coins collected by from entire school.
“We decided we needed to do something,” stated Williams. Lilah’s classmates sorted, named, and counted the coins during the process. Over $1700 in gas and Sullivan’s Foods grocery gift cards were given to the Buikemas, purchased as script cards that also benefit the local Athletic Boosters. Williams had tucked them inside two books for Lilah. They will likely be enjoyed by sisters Campbell, Harper, and Scarlett, too.
Shown left-to-right are Domini Buikema, Lilah on her father Jason’s lap, and educator Williams.
This entire process exemplifies the connection between individuals, groups, children, adults, businesses, and organizations that support Morrison families in need. A t-shirt sale has over 200 orders.
The grade school office has a container to collect change for the remainder of the school year. Drop a wee bit o’ luck in the pot for Lilah.