Many students at Willow Canyon Elementary may not know Elijah Bludworth, but that wasn’t their primary concern when they took action to support him.

Bludworth, now a sophomore at Alta High, was once a student at Willow Canyon.

Patricia Morrison, his fifth-grade teacher, explained, “Once a…” before two student council members, Daphne Rich and Dylan Hose, chimed in: “Wildcat, always a
Wildcat.”

The Willow Canyon Wildcats take care of their own and in this case, the 12-member student council led a fundraising campaign for Bludworth, who is battling cell lymphoblastic lymphoma.

One of their efforts included hanging a large banner on Bludworth’s garage and tying ribbons in Willow Canyon’s school colors around his home. The act was captured by the family’s security camera, which Bludworth’s parents watched from a hospital waiting room.

“Elijah was actually in surgery, and my husband and I were in the waiting room, panicking, because when he was in the ICU, and they kept telling us, ‘if he lays down flat, he’ll die,’” his mother, Shannon Bludworth, said. “Then, they decided to perform surgery on him lying down, so we were terrified.”

Amid their worries, their phone’s Ring camera notification went off.

“My husband looked at it, and said, ‘Oh my gosh, look at these kids, and that’s his (former) teacher.’ We started bawling in the waiting room, and all the other parents who were in the waiting room and heard what was going on, came to watch on our phone when the kids put up the banner,” she said. “It was really cool.”

Once Bludworth came out of surgery, he was also able to see the heartwarming gesture.

At Willow Canyon, students created posters and collected donations for “Elijah Strong,” and the student leaders distributed silicone bracelets with the same message.

“We wanted everyone at Willow Canyon to show their support with the bracelets and also, to bring $1,” Dylan said. “We raised a lot more than our goal of $300.”

According to Morrison, the total raised was closer to $1,800 in cash, in addition to gift cards.

Dylan explained each student council representative worked with a specific classroom to collect funds for Bludworth. Many students brought in baggies filled with pennies, nickels and dimes.

“Everyone’s piggy banks added up to help raise the funds,” said teacher Wendy Winzenried, noting one student even raised $40 to contribute. “People were very generous; we were blown away.”

Daphne said the students wanted Bludworth to know they are supporting him on his journey. 

“We knew he’d be in and out of the hospital for a really long time, and we wanted to get him stuff that he could do,” she said. “We know he likes videogames, so maybe he could get a Nintendo Switch or something else he’d like. It felt good knowing we were helping someone and every dollar we collected was going to his family.”

In addition to money, students also gathered video games, which they planned to exchange at GameStop for ones Bludworth would enjoy. Bludworth, who would turn 16 in late January, is a fan of the San Francisco 49ers and enjoys learning about whales and sharks.

Morrison and Winzenried, the student council advisers, delivered the poster and a basket of gifts to the Bludworth home. Before they left the school, a photo was taken of the student council members with the poster. The Bludworth family sent a photo in return, with their son and family holding the same poster.

In a letter, the family expressed their gratitude: “Your Elijah Strong project brought us so much light in a dark time” and provided sparkly lights, which reminded them of the “sparks of light you gave us.”

Morrison said this sentiment was fitting. 

“Elijah has the biggest heart,”
she said.

Bludworth’s mother shared how Willow Canyon has supported her son, who also has a severe intellectual disability.

“School is difficult for him and often, he didn’t understand was going on, but the teachers were wonderful and loved him and made him feel like he was a part of the class,” she said.

His diagnosis came as a shock to
his family.

“We learned he was diagnosed on Oct. 27,” Shannon Bludworth said. “It came out of nowhere. There were no symptoms. I thought he was having an asthma attack because the night before he told me he was having a hard time swallowing. The next morning, he woke up, and said, ‘I can’t breathe.’ His inhaler wasn’t helped so we took him to Alta View Hospital and within an hour, they were sending us via ambulance to Primary Children’s Hospital and diagnosed him with cancer.”

The doctors discovered a large tumor blocking his airway, compressing his blood vessels and arteries. 

“He had multiple blood clots so he wasn’t getting any oxygen and his trachea was almost completely closed off. For nine days he was in the ICU and had to sit up so he wouldn’t choke. They were able to get some chemo in him to try and shrink the tumor a bit. It was rough; he was in the hospital for almost one month,” she said.

Bludworth, who had played freshman football at Alta High, is now undergoing chemotherapy four days a week. His treatment plan includes a weekly lumbar puncture, during which doctors place him under anesthesia to administer chemo directly into his spine and cerebral spinal fluid. His mother said the treatment is for an aggressive form of cancer and treatments are slated for more than two years.

Ken Rowley, the principal of Alta High, and a school counselor also visited Bludworth, bringing a poster from his Alta classmates.

“We’re trying to keep him in a safe environment because (we don’t want him to get) an infection so we don’t expect he will be able to be at school for the rest of the year,” his mother said. “That’s why he was so excited when we showed him what the Willow Canyon students did when they put up the banner. The kids all waved and told him they were rooting for him. It was so tender and sweet. It meant a lot.” λ