Classmates join in on boy's cancer fight

Pupils at Stevens Creek Elementary School donned pajamas and holiday hats as they headed off to school last month.

In comfy and cozy sleepwear, pupils and faculty raised more than $2,000 for the family of 11-year-old Peter Kwon, a fifth-grader at the school.

Peter, the son of Doug Kwon and Young Troy of Martinez, was diagnosed with Ewing's sarcoma, a bone and tissue cancer, in November. Rather than feeling sorry for himself, he takes each day as it comes.

"I'm dealing with it pretty good," he said.

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Peter has undergone two rounds of chemotherapy and will endure about 10 more months of the high-dosage radiation in an effort to kill malignant cancer cells. Ewing's sarcoma is one of the most common childhood cancers, peaking in people between the ages of 10 and 20.

When Peter's classmates learned of his illness, they immediately wanted to help. According to Stevens Creek Elementary School Principal Michelle Paschal, the school decided to hold Pajama Day for Peter, to help raise funds for the family.

"We just wanted to do something for them," she said. "So, students were allowed to contribute a dollar and wear pajamas or a holiday hat to school."

Peter won't be returning to classes at Stevens Creek Elementary this year and will be home-schooled. He laughed when his brother, a kindergartner, and sister, a fourth-grader, donned pajamas to wear to school. But, he said, he wanted to say "thank you" to all the students and teachers who participated.

"It's a good feeling," he said.