Schools raise $21,000 and counting for 6-year-old battling cancer

Two Monroe County school districts have raised $21,787.50 for a 6-year-old girl in the community who has cancer — and they’re not finished counting the proceeds yet.

Lydia Boyer was diagnosed with stage four brain cancer last year. Columbia School District 4 and Waterloo District 5 started fundraising to help the Boyer family pay Lydia’s medical bills.

In Columbia, the school community collected more than $14,000 in five school days, according to Assistant Superintendent Beth Horner. They are still waiting on totals from three school initiatives, including the sale of #LydiaStrong bracelets and T-shirts at Columbia High School.

Kelly Lerch said students and families in Waterloo raised nearly $7,000. Lerch is the wellness coordinator for District 5.

According to the Hope for Lydia Facebook page, other groups like businesses have also been raising money for the Boyer family.

“It is a sad situation, and clearly everyone wants to help this little girl and her family fight this battle,” Horner said in an emailed statement.

Lerch said the Waterloo school district doesn’t have a direct connection to Lydia or her family, but over the years, students and families in District 5 have responded every time they heard requests for financial support from the community.

“Her family is simply a member of our Monroe County community,” Lerch said in an email. “Her father is a youth pastor at one of churches, and we knew we needed to help.”

Lydia’s dad, Joshua Boyer, is a youth pastor at Hope Christian Church in Columbia, the Facebook page states.

Local students advance to state academic contest

Teams of students from eight metro-east schools have qualified for the state finals in an academic competition.

They competed at the March 13 sectional tournament of the Worldwide Youth in Science and Engineering Academic Challenge at McKendree University.

The state finals competition is scheduled for April 17-20 in Champaign.

The local teams that will advance come from Belleville West High School, O’Fallon Township High School, Freeburg High School, Gibault Catholic High School, Waterloo High School, Triad High School, Wesclin High School and Okawville Senior High School.

The top teams in each division at the sectional were from Gibault, Wesclin, Waterloo and O’Fallon high schools, according to a news release.

The academic challenge tests high school students in seven subjects, including biology, chemistry, computer science, engineering graphics, English, math and physics.

Kindergarten registration, screening starting soon

Kindergarten registration for the 2017-18 school year in Belleville District 118 is scheduled for April 18-21.

For all elementary schools in the district, registration will take place from 8:30-11:30 a.m. and from 1-3 p.m. Parents who are unable to at the schools during those times should contact their child’s school principal to arrange a time to register, according to a news release.

In Belle Valley District 119, kindergarten registration for next year will take place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. April 19-20. For more information, call the school office at 618-236-5200.

Central District 104 will offer kindergarten screenings from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. April 21 and 26. To schedule an appointment, parents should call 618-632-6336 ext. 100. Registration will take place at a later date, according to a District 104 news release.

Fifth graders learn about their family history

The fifth-grade class at St. John Neumann Catholic School in Maryville recently interviewed their family members to learn more about where they came from.

Some children found out how and why their relatives came to America. One student even found a relative’s name on a Ellis Island immigration document during the ancestry research project, according to a news release.

Each of them made posters with pictures and maps of the countries their families immigrated from.

This story was originally published April 11, 2017 at 12:31 PM with the headline "Schools raise $21,000 and counting for 6-year-old battling cancer."