In November 2025, social science teacher Jenny Leahy joined over 300,000 American women who are diagnosed with breast cancer every year. Luckily, she was able to catch it early, and with support from doctors, coworkers, and students, she is on track for a speedy recovery.
“I found out that I have what is known as triple-negative breast cancer. It doesn’t have any hormone receptors, which means that it’s harder to treat. That’s why I’m going through chemo instead of some other treatments,” Leahy said. “As far as side effects go, it’s a lot of fatigue and nausea.”
In addition to personal stressors that came with the diagnosis, Leahy also had to work with other higher staff to arrange treatment days and time off for appointments.
“The school has been incredibly supportive. Mr. Bednarek and Mr. Schommer have been really good about getting me coverage whenever I need to be gone for treatment. And then my group that I hang around with, they have been incredibly supportive and are always checking in on me and asking questions in general,” Leahy said. “My co-workers have started a meal train. Most weeks, I have people who are bringing me food so I don’t have to worry about cooking meals.”
Filling her place while she is away is retired middle school teacher Dave Kramer.
“I’ve been subbing for Ms. Leahy since November 12; I will be filling in for her probably until the end of the school year,” Kramer said. “I’m just glad that I could be of help for the school district when they need me to be here.”
Despite the setbacks, other clubs, teachers, and even students have all reached out to show Leahy that they care. Some of her close co-workers were the first to know, and they were able to plan events for all teachers to participate in.
“So it was the day we got back from winter break, and to wear jeans, teachers were supposed to donate a minimum of $5. We then pooled all that money together,” science teacher Ben Sanderfoot said. “I didn’t see the number of teachers, but I know the dollar amount was more than we initially expected. I mean, there’s the obvious part of just helping, but there’s also a bigger picture of, as colleagues, we need to be teaming up and supporting each other.”
One thing that became immediately worrisome was the nearing of Winterfest week. Leahy manages and advises Student Council’s responsibilities and funds, so some students have had to step it up within the club. Though rarely, Leahy has missed some meetings, and will not be present for a majority of the Winterfest week itself.
“When we get to the dress up days, Ella and Aubrey (Student Council Co-Presidents) will have to step up to make sure we get dress up day counts and pictures,” Leahy said. “As far as the dance, there are a lot of other teachers who have been hired to take care of stuff.”
In the face of fear, Leahy still keeps a positive attitude, and offers advice for those in a similar situation.
“Having people that I’m friends with at work, my family, and people that I’m friends with outside of work who are all there and supporting me has probably been the biggest help in staying positive with everything,” Leahy said. “Talk to people. There are people who have gone through similar or going through the same thing and it’s helpful to talk to them, especially as you get into the process.”
