Days before she begins one of the hardest battles of her life, Harold McCormick Elementary School kindergarten assistant Brittney Maye received dozens of tot-sized pick-me-ups.
Maye was recently diagnosed with a rare form of ovarian cancer, and begins her treatments Monday in Bristol.
On Friday afternoon, all of the kindergarten students made the short walk to Maye’s home to give her cards and pictures they had made for her, and to do a balloon release for their classroom assistant.
“It is completely overwhelming that they love me this much,” Maye said.
Students, teachers, other faculty and Harold McCormick Elementary principal Candace Patai walked the few blocks to visit Maye. The group brought along a wagon filled with presents for Maye, such as a blanket and puzzles to take to her chemotherapy treatments, and students presented her with cards or pictures they made themselves.
“The students were really excited about coming to see her,” Patai said. “They have really missed her.”
After a short visit with “Miss Brittney,” as the students all called her, they all released their balloons in the air as they proclaimed their love for her.
“She’s really nice,” said kindergartner Adrionna Bowman. “When I need help with my work, she is always there to help me. I am thankful that she is my teacher.”
Brandon Vines described Miss Brittney as a nice person.
“She is kind,” he said. “She’s nice to us.”
Other students remarked on how Maye worked with them during the day.
“I miss her,” Cain Barnett said. “She takes us to lunch.”
“I love her,” Violet Oliver said. “She helps the school.”
For Toby Heath, his feelings were simply described.
“I love her,” he said.
Maye has been on leave from work for about a month. She said she hopes to be able to return to school during the last week of classes if all of her treatments go as planned.
“I miss them more than anything,” she said of the students. “Seeing their smiling faces every day makes everything worth it.”