An opportunity presents itself to flaunt gold shirts, shorts, pants, shoes, watches, bracelets, and necklaces through the hallways on Thursday for Comal ISD’s district-wide fight against cancer.

Despite this planned date, the mission to combat cancer continues on for other campus organizations. The Ranger football team is well on its way to a reaching $5,000 goal donation to St. Jude Children’s Hospital. Simultaneously, student candidates are already making the effort to raise money in their own ways for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.

To give, go to Touchdowns Against Cancer’s leaderboard or the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s website.

For the last three years, a campus student has represented the district as Student of the Year candidate for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. This year, Avery Walker represents the district. The candidate or program that raises the most money at the of the campaign is titled the Student of the Year by the South Central Texas Chapter of LLS.

Walker’s team is named “Hope for Peggy” after her grandmother who passed away from cancer and whom she never got to meet.

A member of the Silver Spurs and a local fishing team, Walker will campaign to raise funds for LLS and seek the community’s support to continue the tradition.

The 2019 candidate was junior Kayla Friesenhahn.

“I really like that LLS has done for patients and their families,” Friesenhahn said, “not only funding research and treatments, but also helping families get through the cancer process and treatments through financial aid.”

In 2018, P.J. O’Toole served as candidate based on his own battle with childhood cancer when he was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia as a kindergarten student at Bill Brown Elementary. Today, he is a senior fullback on the football team and an advocate for childhood cancer awareness and cancer free.

“No matter what you do,” he said, “you can make a different. It doesn’t matter how old you are, just taking a little bit of your time and either donate or get involved in something will help save someone’s life.”