As students and faculty walked through the halls of South Campus on Jan. 29, it was hard to miss the sea of students decked out in bright and colorful orange shirts. These shirts, along with messy buns, were meant to symbolize the unity of the sophomore class in their efforts to show support for their fellow classmate Katie Palermo ‘17 in her second fight against Leukemia

“Our goal is to get the word out and most importantly lift Katie’s spirits and make sure that she is doing well,” friend and classmate Haley Gorman ‘17 said. “It helps her a lot to know that people are there for her and are doing things in her honor.”

Students organized this event known as the “Orange Crush” to get as many people as possible to wear the Leukemia awareness color in honor of Palermo’s second diagnosis with this blood disease.

“We had a lot more people wearing orange than I could have ever expected,” Gorman said. “So it was definitely amazing to see so much participation within the student body.”

Palermo was initially diagnosed in 2012 and underwent a year of chemotherapy until she was declared cancer-free in 2013. However, last month she was re-diagnosed. Palermo is currently in remission and is undergoing another round of chemotherapy in hopes of a full recovery. Nonetheless, the outpour of support from the LT community has positively affected her mindset and attitude, she said.

“It’s amazing that so many people participated in the “Orange Crush” to support me, even if it was in a simple way,” Palermo said.

Annika Murrell ’15 is another close friend of Palermo’s and is raising money for the St. Baldrick’s Foundation, an organization that funds research for childhood cancer. Murrell is shaving her head on March 16 at the St. Baldrick’s event hosted by Palmer’s Place and has already successfully raised around $1,085 with the help from classmate Mary Wood ’15.

On Feb. 3, the LT girls’ basketball team hosted a Pink Out game that raised $2,372 for the St. Baldrick’s Foundation that will be donated in Palermo’s name. Gorman is also selling “Katie Krusader” bracelets and will be organizing a penny war at South Campus to raise money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.

“The support from not only my friends but also complete strangers has been incredible,” Palermo said. It’s unbelievable to see so many people do this for me.”