'Road to recovery': Sault Ste. Marie teacher shaves head to support student battling cancer

Students and staff at a high school in Sault Ste. Marie have been rallying around a teacher who shaved her head to support a 13-year-old who is battling cancer.

 Lucas Catterick, a Grade 8 student at Korah Collegiate, is currently battling Burkitt's lymphoma. That is a fast-growing, but highly treatable form of cancer. 

Lucas was diagnosed just days after experiencing symptoms in early November. He is now resting after his third round of chemotherapy.

To support the student, the school held a charity basketball game on Wednesday. Tickets for the fundraiser were $2 with all proceeds going to the Catterick family. Teacher Shannon Charrette, had her fiancé shave her head in solidarity with the young student during halftime of the basketball game. Lucas watched the game and the gesture live on Instagram from Toronto's Sick Kids Hospital.

 "Lucas is bubbly, outgoing, effervescent… He's always smiling and is a wonderful addition to the grade school classroom," Charrette said.

Despite the challenges, Lucas remains optimistic. "He was pretty impressed. He's like, wow, you went really short. I'm like, yeah, I did," Charrette said with a laugh. "His hair is longer than mine actually, if you can believe it."

Charrette says she deeply loves and cares for all her students.

"I'd like to think the kids are going to remember everything I've taught them and every amazing lesson I've ever put together. But in the grand scheme of things, when you think about how much time I spend a day with these children, it's actually the kindness, it's the extras that you do," said the teacher.

Charrette's decision to shave her head was deeply personal. "He's only 13 and he's away from all of his friends. He's away from his extended family, what he's used to, and he's losing his hair. And especially somebody who's thirteen, my gosh, that's significant. And I thought, no, that's it, off it comes," she said. "It's not lip service, we care here."

The basketball game saw Korah Collegiate's senior boys team face Central Algoma Secondary School. Charrette says it had quite the atmosphere. 

" I had to peel the kids off as the day was going on and we were getting closer and closer to the event. You could feel the electricity and the excitement," Charrette said.

Students and staff wore custom-designed shirts in support of Lucas. They also cheered as Charrette's fiancé shaved her head before a packed gymnasium. 

Charrette said her act of solidarity sparked meaningful conversations within the school community. "High school is such a weird age. They just are so self-conscious, and I'm thinking, hey, look at me, if I can do it, you can take your hood off and be in class," she said.

Charette says she is excited for Lucas to resume school after his recovery. For now, his Korah family continues to rally around him..

"We're just so thankful that he's on the road to recovery and that he's coming back to us," Charrette said.