Quartz Hill High School held its annual Cancer Awareness Week in an effort to acknowledge those whose lives have been affected by the illness. Whether it be by honoring cancer survivors or remembering those who have fallen in their battle against cancer, the past week was designed to show our respect for the millions currently fighting the disease and spark awareness amongst those not personally affected. Organized by our very own American Cancer Society Club here on campus, this annual event was able to shed light on a topic that is not frequently discussed. 

With close connections to the official American Cancer Society, the goal of ACS Club is to help students see how cancer has impacted our community and raise funds to support those who have been affected by cancer. When asked about the overall objective of ACS Club, Jaden Roldan, President of ASC, said, “We hope to promote a fun and loving club that tries to bring joy back to a group that has experienced such a disheartening thing like cancer.” In many ways, they succeeded.

According to Treasurer of ACS Club, Nathan Nguyen, there are 14 cancer survivors on campus. Throughout the week, ACS has worked behind the scenes to make sure that every day of that week was eventful for each survivor. “We went to each survivor’s classroom and gave them special homemade gifts that our club made and contributed on during our work days. We also made each cancer survivor on campus their own poster to hang on their door and drew the ribbon of what cancer thy survived and how long they have been a survivor.” 

To raise funds for this program, ACS Club had a table set up at the main quad selling T-shirts, bags, keychains, socks, etc. during both lunches; all its proceeds went directly to the American Cancer Society organization. Furthermore, the club had a booth during Friday night’s football game, where they earned more profit through their sales.

Meanwhile, the club raised awareness by asking people to wear pink on Wednesday and during Friday’s football Pink Game to support breast cancer awareness. On Thursday, Halloween, ACS adopted the spirit day “Scare Away Cancer,” and encouraged students to come dressed in their Halloween costumes. A few teachers took the opportunity to help spread the message during class. Mr. Herman, an AP Calculus teacher, for example, came to school wearing a different cancer awareness shirt and took a few minutes out of his classes discussing the issue.

Experiencing cancer’s terrible grip is, beyond a doubt, a struggle for everyone involved – the ill and surrounding family and friends. The ACS Club’s work ensures that the valiant lives of cancer survivors and those who have succumbed to the disease are honored appreciated, and, above all, never forgotten.