Kimball students raise funds for principal's son battling cancer

KIMBALL, NE — The Kimball community coming together for one of its own. 

Students at Kimball Public Schools recently held a fundraiser dubbed "Jeans for Jake." The goal was to help Jake Reader who was recently diagnosed with Stage four Hodgkin's Lymphoma. Jake is the son of Kimball High School principal Danielle Reader. 

During a Civics class, teacher Jeri Ferguson proposed the idea of a fundraiser to her students. They took the idea and ran with it, coming up with multiple ways to support the Reader family. 

The student-led effort lasted from Feb. 9, to Feb. 19. For the fundraiser, teachers could wear jeans to school during that time for $5.00 per day. Students also got local businesses involved as employees of participating businesses could also pay to wear jeans to work. 

Several businesses also let the students leave donation buckets and sold bracelets that said "Just for Jake" on them. Students also held a pancake feed Friday, Feb. 19, where "FlapJakes" were available for $1.00 each. 

The goal for the effort was to raise $1,000. If the students met that, superintendent Trevor Anderson said students and staff could spend Friday afternoon competing in three legged-races through the high school gym. 

The fundraiser reached its goal and the students earned their afternoon of fun. At the Friday afternoon event, students presented a check to Reader's family. 

In total, $9,200 was collected between all the fundraising efforts and a GoFundMe that had been set up in Jake's name, according to Ferguson. 

Reader continues treatment at the Cancer Center in Chicago. The GoFundMe account is still active. You can donate to it here.