STREETSBORO, Ohio — Friday saw an energetic scene inside the Streetsboro High School gymnasium, where students filled the stands wearing red shirts with signs in hands. It’s the kind of energy you would normally see at a basketball game, or even a pep rally at the end of Spirit Week.
But students were instead cheering for their classmate and friend, Cole Palmer, who is leaving school for what could be at least two months or more as he hopes to get a heart transplant. Students yelled, "We love you, Cole!" as he entered the gym.
It was an emotional moment for his mom, Sherly, who is also a substitute teacher at the school.
“For the staff and students supporting him, he's excited that he does have people there (for him)," Sherly told 3News. "He thought he was alone, but he sees that the whole school's supporting him."
Students wore red because it's a symbol of solidarity for heart disease, something Cole has battled since he was born.
"He has something called hypoplastic left heart syndrome," Sherly explained. "We knew at some point this was coming; I just don't think either one of us realized it was going to be when he was so young. We were hoping for at least a few more years, maybe in his 20s."
Palmer says Cole's heart was working properly, until one of the four components that pumps oxygen into our lungs — known as the right ventricle — went out.
"The only part that really worked is now failing," Sherly added. "It just took a turn for the worse pretty quickly."
As most families get ready for Thanksgiving, Cole, his parents, and three other siblings are driving to Nationwide Children's Hospital in Columbus, where they are both hopeful and thankful for the chance he gets a new heart. He has his classmates supporting him every step of the way.
"As a community, this is something we fought together," Sherly declared.
Sherly says Cole is at the top of the donor list, and now, they wait for a match. Once he gets a new heart, they will have to wait at least three weeks to bring him home.