Apr 13, 2009 3:21 pm US/Pacific
Nancy Phung: Living With Cancer
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS 5) ―
Following Nancy Phung around at San Rafael High, is like watching a hummingbird. Tiny and quick, she flits about, popping into a classroom to say hi to a teacher, greeting a friend, hugging another one.
"She knows everyone," said her teacher, Jeannine Thurston.
School is Nancy's second home, but teachers there were surprised the day Nancy sat outside the Vice Principal's office and finally broke down, telling Jeannine Thurston what was going on at home. Her mom had terminal cancer and because her father had left them, Nancy wasn't sure what would happen to her.
Thurston recalls "five to six adults just became immediately focused on figuring out what was going on with her; getting her as much help as we possibly could that day, that weekend, that moment, and that has never really stopped."
"In many ways, they saved my life," said Nancy.
Schools stepping in for parents is something we hear about often with
Students Rising Above. Even in wealthy Marin County, there are pockets of poverty, and teachers in most public schools tell us they know too many kids struggling at home with money, parents, and domestic turmoil.
Unlike Nancy, many don't get the help they need.
"I think she was waiting for someone to ask her a question that would allow her to say what was happening," said Thurston. "Absolutely worried about being orphaned, worried about whether or not she could go to college, worried about how she would feed herself and how she would house herself."
Nancy's mother had struggled, working long days to raise her children after her husband left. She spoke no English, so it wasn't easy for her to find work. Money was always tight. The cervical cancer was just the latest chapter in a difficult life, and the prognosis was not good.
"The doctor told me she has six months to a year to live," recalled Nancy. "Every day I went to school, it would be really hard because every time the phone rang during class, I had to think that it could have been my mom calling me, or the doctor calling me to tell me my mom was gone."
Nancy's mom has defied the doctors. In Nancy's senior year, she is doing well and closer to her daughter than ever before. Every minute they have together is precious. When they are together, Nancy says, "we don't have to say anything to each other. It's that we are together, and it's a big bubble. Nobody else around us matters."
The emotional support at school is clearly what helped Nancy negotiate the turmoil at home. She learned she can talk with the teachers about it and ask for help.
"It's okay to talk about your feelings," she said. "This school has really opened my eyes. It's been my family and now, it's my Mom's family."
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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