As a crowd of Harbor Lights middle schoolers sprint past Jr. Ashlyn Stonick, she tosses pink, purple, and yellow powder into the air, motivating them to keep running. Alongside Stonick, her classmates throw an abundance of hues, coating the sky and students with vibrant colors. Although unapparent to spectators, these colors signify strength and life in the battle against cancer.
On May 24, the middle school “stampede” gathered at the football stadium to start the run. “The color run is an end-of-year activity put on by Harbor Lights Middle School. It is designed as a fun way to conclude the school year and is tied into a charitable cause,” instructor Larry De Leon said.
De Leon is the Peer Assistant Listeners teacher at West Ottawa High School and has brought his PALS in Training class to the color run for the past two years. The high school students made signs for Emerson, prepared the path for the runners, threw the color onto the middle schoolers, and helped clean up afterward. “I enjoy seeing our high school students interact with the middle schoolers. Not only is it rewarding to volunteer, but we enjoy helping with set-up and clean-up,” De Leon said.
“The reason behind this year’s color run was to help bring awareness to brain cancer and support a WO sixth grader who is currently battling brain cancer,” De Leon said. The 2024 color run was dedicated to Emerson Hoogendorn. She is eleven years old and was diagnosed with diffuse midline glioma at the age of six. Emerson underwent two major brain surgeries and 30 rounds of radiation. DMG is a type of cancer that starts in the spinal cord and, devastatingly, only gives months to live. However, after joining a clinical trial, her tumor began to shrink and stabilize. It’s been five years, and Emerson continues to fight day by day.
On May 24, at the end of fifth grade, doctors found a rare secondary type of cancer caused by radiation called radiation-induced gliomas. In June of 2023, she had her first surgery and then started more sessions of radiation later in July. Currently, Emerson is home and even showing improvement. She continues to show incredible strength and inspires everyone around her, especially her teachers and peers.
“This was the second annual color run for HL. Our first color run was the culmination of raising money for cystic fibrosis. Since May is Brain Cancer Awareness Month, this year was dedicated to Emerson,” Harbor Lights counselor Katie Anderson said.
Standing as Emerson’s favorite animal, the inclusion and meaning behind the elephants in the organization are truly beautiful. Her teachers and classmates who stood by her side throughout elementary school were known as “Emerson’s herd,” which is where the term “stampede” and the elephant graphic came from.
“The color run was a very uplifting and special event. To know that so many people, even those who don’t know Emerson very well, were surrounding her in support and love provided so much encouragement! It was very moving to see the entire school come together to celebrate Emerson and all that she is going through,” Emerson’s mother Ami Hoogendorn said, “my favorite part was that students had the chance to get to know Emerson and her story. Now that she is in middle school, many students aren’t familiar with her and her journey but have questions or wonderings about it. This gave them such a wonderful chance to learn about Emerson, learn about life, put some perspective on when you may be going through a hard time, and to have empathy and compassion for others.”
The month of May was filled with weekly events to support Emerson. On Tuesdays, Emerson the Brave merchandise was on sale at lunch, including bracelets, cups, and shirts. Thursdays were for wearing your Emerson the Brave shirts, sweatshirts, apparel, and/or purple out. Finally, on Fridays, students were able to pay $1 to wear a hat. At the end of each week, Academy teachers collected money in their class jars to collect funds to support Emerson. “The top three academy classes got to start the color run this year,” Anderson said. Other activities, like photo booths, games, special drinks, and more, also took place throughout the week.
“The support from school provides encouragement and hope, knowing that so many people in our community have our back and more importantly, have Emerson’s back. Our family is very appreciative of the students and staff of Harbor Lights for welcoming Emerson with open arms and for continuously supporting her as she fights her second battle with brain cancer. Your love encourages her to continue to fight and the support means more than you know to our family as well,” Hoogendorn said.
Although May is over, support for Emerson will never come to a standstill. Her constant bravery to continue battling has amazed those around her, making her everyone’s role model. “We call her Emerson the Brave for a reason – she is truly the bravest person she always has been. She has so many difficult times, yet she never gives up. She is courageous and creative. And my most favorite trait of Emerson is that she is incredibly empathetic–she is always thinking of others, despite the fact she herself is the one going through such a hard and life-changing time,” Hoogendorn said.
For participants, the color run was an enjoyable way to end the school year. For Emerson and her family, it held much deeper significance.
