"Cancer is a thief, but it does not define those affected."

These words end a video specially prepared for the Terry Fox School Run assembly at the Cochrane High School, Sept. 26. The production centres upon a dialogue that is commonly suppressed when the word cancer is mentioned. 

Grade 12 student Jenna Kachur, who lead the organizing committee for the school's annual school run, believes we can't let this happen. With guidance and assistance from teacher Heather Haxton, she was fortunate to have fellow students and videographers Ryan Gourley and Sam Cordara volunteer to capture some candid conversations with 14 students and staff about special people in their lives who were afflicted with cancer. Thirteen of them appeared in the 14-minute video.

"I wanted to reflect something more than the condition itself because it really is about the people who it impacts," says Kachur. "I felt like a lot of the time these people are overshadowed by cancer itself. It's important to recognize that it's there and should be acknowledged and not something to be in denial of.

"But at the same time, I think it's also important to recognize that people often feel that it's kind of the end of the line if that happens to yourself or someone you know. In some cases, it does end in tragedy but you can still live a happy life and that person doesn't have to be remembered by how he suffered, he can be remembered as the person he was."

She says she wanted to allow people to connect that is often denied.

 "I feel like cancer is treated as a taboo in a way because people really don't talk about it much. And when people do, it's only about the grimmest parts. I think it's important to acknowledge that it's not something that you have to hide and or have to be concerned about people's reactions because everyone's been affected in some way or another and you shouldn't have any shame for it.

"Cancer is something a family shouldn't have to deal with alone."

Students lead the assemblyAyla Godard, Jenna Kachur and Alexandria Veckenstedt lead the assembly.

Gourley and Cordara, also grade 12 students, have their own YouTube channel under "Chance Studios." For this project, they used two cameras and shot the interviews from two different angles. The sets were simple yet effective in design.

"We tried to make it like an open environment," explains Gourley. "Although cameras were pointing at them we wanted them to feel comfortable during the conversation because we were talking about pretty deep things a lot of people aren't brave enough to share."

Cordara estimated they shot four hours worth of videos and it took about two hours to edit.

"We aimed to make it as relatable as possible," he explains.

It was. Many of the 900 high school students assembled were captivated by hearing the stories of fellow students and their teachers.

"You guys did such an amazing job," Kachur told the pair during the interview. "I did tear up a little bit and it's just so fantastic. Thank you. It means so much to me."

Ayla Godard and Alexandria Veckenstedt joined Kachur in leading the assembly to honour Terry Fox, the lives of many who have been impacted by cancer and collective demonstrate support. A short video on Fox's Marathon of Hope was also shown.

The run that followed involved students of the Cochrane High, Manachuban Middle School and Elizabeth Barrett Elementary School which saw them eagerly circle the block for several laps.

Other Cochrane schools also participated in the run and participated in assemblies, joining millions of other Canadian students. St. Timothy High School, for one, held their event today (Sept. 27).

The school run was established in 2005 during the 25th anniversary of the Marathon of Hope.