Michelle Flanagan
It's
admirable when one community can come together to help a family in a time of
need. It's extraordinary when three can do it.
The Conkle
family is well known not only in Van Buren, but also in Findlay and North
Baltimore. Kim Conkle graduated from VB and used to teach at Powell Elementary
School in North Baltimore, and her husband Matt grew up in McComb. All three of
their daughters (Ashley, Emily, and Michaela) graduated from Van Buren-Michaela
in 2013-and were very involved. Kim has battled with breast cancer before, and
earlier this year, she found out that it was back. This was devastating news,
and it was felt throughout three communities.
It wasn't
long before people wanted to do something more than send their condolences.
VB senior
Drew Patterson and alumnus Brennon Swain rallied to raise money in order to
send the Conkles on a family vacation.
The
Conkles' church had a service dedicated to the family.
Karen
Flanagan, Kelly Shroll, and Chris McKinley organized a barbeque dinner from
which the profits went towards offsetting the cost of medical bills.
Drew
Patterson explained how he and Brennon coordinated their plan. “Brennon and I
wanted to make a difference in some way, and the best gift we thought that we
could give the Conkles was family time to spend together.” After some
brainstorming, they decided that sending them on a trip would be the perfect
way to do so.
Since
summer was already in full-swing, and fall would bring its multitude of
activities, they knew they didn't have a lot of time. The total time this took,
beginning to end?
A mere four
weeks.
They began
by going door to door, handing out flyers that explained the situation, and
left envelopes with return addresses on them so money could be sent in.
Starting in Van Buren, they worked their way out to the Findlay area.
Although
they weren't sure how much money it would take, a goal was set. And that goal
was more than doubled.
Drew said
that they were shocked with the community's generosity, through which they were
able to more than double their goal.
In the
beginning, Brennon and Drew took their idea to Michaela. Although they wanted
to get permission from her dad to ensure they weren't stepping on toes, they
hoped she'd keep it a secret from her mom. When their goal was met, they
presented the family with money...and it turns out that Michaela didn't tell
anyone.
Drew
described when the secret came out, saying, “Kim had no idea, and she was
shocked. And thankful, and humble.”
When asked
why they didn't just wait for someone else to organize a fundraiser, to assume
that another friend would take the reins, Drew said, “We never thought about
maybe someone else doing it. We just decided that we wanted to help.”
Michaela
Conkle talked about their vacation, explaining, “We went to Corolla, North
Carolina. We went there one time, the second time she had breast cancer, with
my cousins. We really liked it and we decided to go back.”
The Conkles
were able to stay in North Carolina for one week, and participated in a wide
variety of activities.
The Conkles enjoying their vacation in North Carolina “We went to
the beach a lot. We went to an aquarium, dolphin watching, an outdoor feeder,
we went shopping and stuff like that.”
When asked
about other ways that the area has been helping them out, Michaela said,
“Teachers and friends from North Baltimore bring us food one night every week,
the teachers at VB bring us food one night every week, and so do the people at
my church. We have a lot of food...” She mentioned that various people will
also come by to drop things off, such as bags full of hats.
Along with
the vacation and the community's efforts, she said, “Our church had a special
service with shirts that said 'Pray for Kim' and had her favorite Bible verse
on the back.” The verse was Isaiah 41:10: “So do not fear, for I am with you;
do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I
will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”
After their
trip to Corolla, a benefit dinner was held called 'Cue for Conkle. It was
organized by Karen Flanagan and Kelly Shroll. Andrew Shroll, a VB graduate,
designed the posters and tickets, and Chris McKinley provided the food.
Although a
fundraiser had just finished, the community seemed ready to give some more. While
Drew and Brennon went door to door, Karen and Kelly chose to go the electronic
route.
Karen said,
“We put the posters Andrew designed in North Baltimore as well as Van Buren, we
created a Facebook event, it was posted on Nbnewsxpress (North Baltimore's
public event website) and I went to Powell Elementary School, where Kim taught,
and left a flyer with them. The secretary there sent out an email to all the
teachers in the district.”
She
explained that the difference between the two fundraisers was that while Drew
and Brennon focused on giving a trip, the barbeque was aimed towards medical
costs. It was simply two different ways to help a family.
The idea
was born shortly after Kim got her third and most recent diagnosis, when the
uncertainty of medical coverage was being discussed. Jon Kelley, Tim Myers, and
Cheryl Swisher and Karen were pitching ideas on how to help.
“The next
day I was talking with Mrs. McKinley-they're friends of the Conkles and he is a
former school board member-and she said that she felt sure they'd be able to
help out because he now has Bubba's Southern Pride catering. That's where it
took off from.”
Kim Conkle with her granddaughter at the Van Buren girls' soccer game vs. Bluffton
And take
off it did, with a total of 606 dinners being sold.
As for the
overall effect on her family, Michaela said, “It's brought us closer together,
and closer to the Lord. It strengthens your faith. We're really appreciative of
everything.”