'Kicking for Kiersten' Honors Student Who Died From Cancer

Editor's note: the following article was submitted by Sequoyah High School student Kyle Renner.

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On a sunny, Saturday afternoon in honor of a girl taken too soon, kids were kicking soccer balls into goals, juggling, laughing, and having a great time while raising money for a scholarship fund in Kiersten Dickson’s memory.

On Saturday, Feb. 27, Emilee Saigh, a senior at Sequoyah High School, held the Kicking for Kiersten winter festival, an event to honor her friend and teammate Kiersten Dickson, who passed away from lung cancer this past July.

As part of her senior project, Saigh organized the festival to raise money for a scholarship in Dickson’s name, and flyers for the event advertised “an afternoon full of games, competitions, raffle prizes, and good food.”

“The first part of my project was a fundraiser selling shirts that had Kiersten’s senior quote on the back and ‘Kicking for Kiersten’ on the front, along with a cancer awareness ribbon which was a salute to her," Saigh said. "Then, for the festival, I set up games geared toward children such as an obstacle course, juggling, and a cake walk, which was super fun! I also had two moms donate some homemade mac and cheese, and I had raffle prizes.”

Saigh and Dickson both played soccer at Sequoyah, Saigh as an eighth grader on the junior varsity team and Dickson on varsity before she graduated. The two practiced together, rode together on bus rides, and came together with a love of the sport.

“On the day of the festival, we raised teal balloons — teal was her favorite color — and had a moment of silence in her honor,” Saigh said. “In all, we raised over $300 from raffle tickets sales which were put toward the Kiersten Dickson Scholarship.”

A tribute to Dickson and the sport she loved, the $1,000 scholarship will be awarded to a senior soccer player at Sequoyah attending college in the fall. The festival served as a fun way to raise funds for the scholarship and to raise awareness for Dickson and the disease which took her life.

“I hope that the festival helped raise more awareness for lung cancer and also for the fact that anyone can get cancer at any age, remembering that everyone is affected by it," Saigh added. "So many people supported the event from day one, and I think most of the festival’s impact is a reflection of Kiersten herself and the mark she left on everyone.

Saigh believes the winter festival was a success.

“So many more people showed up than I had originally anticipated, and to top it all off, it was a beautiful day which made all the fun that much better,” Saigh said with a smile.

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Images via Kyle Renner