Postcard collection, school support help student fight his cancer

Published: 2007-01-24

LIGONIER, Pa. (CNS) -- While sixth-grader Chad Scanlon has been battling a cancerous brain tumor he has kept his focus on other things, including collecting postcards from all 50 states and every country around the world. The student at Holy Trinity School in Ligonier became intrigued with atlases and geography, so much so that he created his own atlas last summer. He and his family, parishioners of St. Boniface Parish in Chestnut Ridge, traveled to Belgium and several states before he became ill. "I'm a big geography person and I like postcards because I can see the scenery," said Chad, the son of James and Marie Paule Scanlon. His U.S. collection includes several postcards of Washington that were sent to him from the office of President George W. Bush. He was working on getting postcards from Africa and Asia. While he was receiving daily cancer treatments in Pittsburgh, Chad and his mother, who is the school's French teacher, missed a lot of classes. When the treatment caused his hair to fall out, 20 classmates and two teachers either cut their hair or shaved their heads in support.

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