Math can be tricky, but fourth-grade students at Vineyards Elementary School in Naples will tell you it's a lot easier when you have a teacher like Ms. Sara Sterling.
"She helps us whenever we need it," said Iris. "She explains things to us in a way that we can understand, and she's just amazing."
Students were especially in awe of their teacher during her darkest time, like in 2021, when Ms. Sterling was diagnosed with breast cancer.
"I'm a mother," said Ms. Sterling. "That was the scariest part. If something would happen to me, and my girls would grow up without a mom."
Students quickly eased her fear with a creative surprise. Ms. Sterling opened her classroom door every Friday morning to a sea of students in pink shirts with an encouraging message on them.
"It says in October we wear pink for our teacher," Iris said with pride.
"I could feel the love and the hugs," said Ms. Sterling. "I can't put into words how much it meant to me."
While Ms. Sterling's cancer is now in remission, the kid's connection to the cause is here to stay.
"My Aunt had breast cancer too," says Billy, a student of Ms. Sterling. "So it's very good to me to feel like I'm wearing this shirt for my teacher and also for my Aunt because she had breast cancer, and she's a survivor for it."
Every Friday in October for Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the kids wore their shirts with additional accessories for extra spunk and flare.
"I bought it at Goodwill," said Iris of her bright pink wig. "I was like, 'Mom, I need it.'"
In Ms. Sterling's classroom, the equation is simple. Encouragement is cultivated, strength is built, plus kindness is a life-saver.
"I made it, I'm here," said Ms. Sterling.