Calwell Primary showed what a magnificent school community it is on Wednesday, raising money for local cancer patients and their families and supporting year two student Zach Jego who has been in Sydney since last October receiving treatment for leukemia.
Zach's teacher, Jack Beattie, has been keeping him connected to the school with a fortnightly video call so Zach can tell his classmates what he has been doing and his friends can keep him in touch with what's going on in their lives.
"Even though he's not there, we still want him to be part of it," Mr Beattie said.
Zach, 7, is receiving treatment at the Sydney Children's Hospital in Randwick and living at a Ronald McDonald House with either his mum or dad, missing his friends and school, only able to return to Canberra for two weekends in the last six months.
Mr Beattie wanted to support Zach so organised a crazy hair day at the school, shaving his own hair to be bald like Zach and also committing to running the half marathon at this weekend's The Canberra Times Marathon Festival to raise funds for Rise Above Capital Region Cancer Relief.
With Calwell Primary students and teachers sporting their craziest hairstyles on Wednesday, the school and Mr Beattie were on track to raising $3000 for Rise Above, helping cancer patients and their families meet basic needs such as fuel vouchers, food and medication costs as they are treated away from home.
Mr Beattie said running a half-marathon and shaving his hair was the least he could do to support Zach.
"I don't think anything I'm doing is hard, really, in comparison to what Zach has been through, and all the other families who go through cancer in the Canberra region," he said.
Mr Beattie said the school community had been very generous in raising funds for Rise Above, with a gold coin donation at the crazy hair day.
"All the kids have been really supportive and I've seen not just coins go in, but notes going in," he said.
"We originally set out to raise $1000 but I think now we are close to $3000, which is really fantastic."
Mr Beattie was supported by learning support assistant Ryan Kennedy who also shaved his hair, the pair quickly starting a trend.
PE teacher Vlado Susko surprised everyone but cutting off his long locks, after not having a haircut for more than two years. He planned to donate the hair to Variety to make wigs for children with cancer.
And teachers Mark Glover and Patrick Delfs also decided at the last moment to get their hair shaved as well, much to the delight of the children.
Deputy principal Katie Brown praised Mr Beattie for looking out for Zach and trying to make a difference.
"Jack is a second-year teacher who has gone above and beyond connecting up with Zach while he is unwell and making him feel part of the school," she said.
"It's incredible to see the initiative such a young person has taken, connecting with the community and really supporting Zach and his family."
Zach, who is about to turn eight, was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia last October.
He was a little boy always on the go, but was starting to flag, which was out of character.
"I just noticed he wasn't as active as he was, getting pains in his knee which then went down to his ankle. He showed no other symptoms except joint pain," mum Nicole said.
"It took a bit of pushing with doctors and scans and physio that it wasn't just growing pains.
"After some pushing, I asked for the autoimmune screen to be done and some abnormalities showed up in his white cells."
He has been treated ever since at the Sydney Children's Hospital. His parents take turns staying with him, coming back to Canberra to work and then being by Zach's side.
"I wouldn't be anywhere else," Nicole said.
Rise Above had been a big support to the family, giving them assistance through means such as fuel vouchers for the trips between Canberra and Sydney.
"They've helped us a lot," Nicole said.
Rise Above CEO Wayne Simpson was at Calwell Primary on Wednesday with the charity's mascot, Conroy. He reckoned Mr Beattie was a hero and the school was wonderful for looking to help Zach's families and many other families living with cancer in the region.
"All we want to do is make the journey a little easier and we can only do that with your support," Mr Simpson said.
A GoFundMe page has also been set up for Zach and his mum to help them cope with the financial stress of living away in Sydney as the brave little boy receives treatment.
