"Long before the season of thank-you notes and gift cards, his 12th graders quietly pooled their own money, planned a surprise and waited for the perfect moment to give their long-term substitute something simple and unmistakably personal: a pair of the slip-on Vans he wears almost every day. What happened next, the tears of gratitude from the teacher, the eruption of cheers from the students, became a small burst of light in a world that often feels heavy."
"In the video, Swicegood, 42, is visibly emotional before he even opens the box. By that point, the entire room is caught up in the anticipation. When Swicegood sees the Vans, his favorite shoes, his mouth drops open in astonishment, and his face crumples with raw emotion. "We were all crying with him," 18-year-old Kalia Shak, who filmed the clip, tells TODAY.com, noting that even the boys were wiping at their eyes."
Senior English students at Providence High School pooled money and surprised their long-term substitute, Jeff Swicegood, with a pair of slip-on Vans he wears daily. The gift prompted tears of gratitude from Swicegood and cheers from students; the moment was filmed and went viral on TikTok. Swicegood had experienced recent losses: his father died when he was eight and his mother, also a teacher, died of metastatic breast cancer after he cared for her, deepening his emotional pain. The students' gesture reminded him that he matters and provided unexpected joy during a difficult time.
Read at TODAY.com
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