The hallways at Pleasant Valley schools this spring have been filled with colorful shirts saying, “Where there’s a Will, there’s a Way.” The shirts have been made in honor of Will Kohn, who has been fighting HLHS, or hypoplastic left heart syndrome, ever since he was born. It’s a rare heart defect where the left half of the heart is severely underdeveloped. The tough 6-year-old has been waiting for a new heart since he was put on the transplant list in July of 2014.
There have been various fundraisers and support for the Kohn family throughout the past couple of months. Will Kohn is the son of Chris Kohn, science teacher at PVHS. Will has been in the PICU at the new Children’s Hospital at the University of Iowa for over a hundred days. In order to help out, there have been countless efforts at PV schools and beyond the Pleasant Valley Community to support the family as much as possible.
A variety of event committees and organizations have chosen to donate their proceeds to the Kohn family for Will’s expenses. Hundreds of t-shirts have been sold through an online organization, One Mission, which has raised $9,600 towards a $20,000 goal. It’s a fundraising site where 40% of the sales are donated directly towards the cause.
Here at PV, the fundraising has been constant as well. The annual spring variety show decided that raising money for Will at this year’s show was the best use of their efforts.
The student host of the variety show, Austin Stickel ‘17, said, “It only seemed appropriate to give back to someone in our community. To a family who has not only been through so much, but has also sacrificed a lot.”
Two upcoming events planned to benefit the Kohns are the annual PV Powderpuff game and a LuLaRoe party. Powderpuff is taking place Wednesday, May 16, and the LuLaRoe shopping party, made possible by PV faculty member and LuLaRoe consultant, Katie Buchter, will take place at the high school from 3:00-4:30 p.m. on May 26. The event is open to the public.
The financial and emotional support in PV schools has been tremendous.However that isn’t the only support the Kohn family has seen, as fundraising efforts have extended beyond the school district and throughout the community.
A local organization, Crossfit Bond, decided to put on an event called Burpees for Will. They teamed up with Jordan’s Joy as well as a few other local businesses in order to raise money. At the event, every dollar that was donated allowed a burpee to be assigned to someone, hence the name, Burpees for Will. Crossfit Bond and a few other local organizations raised $8,000, and Jordan’s Joy donated $10,000 on top of the money raised for a combined donation of $18,000 for the Kohn family.
Anna Vershaw ‘17, who participated in the event, said, “Crossfit communities come together a lot for different fundraisers that benefit local citizens, so it was really nice that they put this event on for Will. Mr. Kohn has affected my life a lot and has been influential to me. It’s a great way to give back to his family.”
If interested in donating to the Kohn family, the family’s GoFundMe link, set up by one of Chris Kohn’s colleagues, is below. It was created in January and has currently raised $24,860 out of a $30,000 goal. https://www.gofundme.com/xu-where-theres-a-will-theres-a-way
Those close to Kohn have arranged for the remaining Wednesdays of the school to be named “Will Wednesdays.” During these days, students and staff wear their Team Will shirts or Iowa gear in support of young Will Kohn, whose story and strength has reached, amazed, and touched countless people. All are encouraged to participate as the PV community shows their support to a very special one of their own.
The family hopes Will’s story encourages more people to discuss organ donation and consider becoming donors. Meanwhile, Will continues to fight and his parents continue to hope that another family’s selfless act in their moment of unimaginable heartache will become the only thing that can save their son.
