Students at a California elementary school in Moreno Valley had a big hand in making a difference in the life of one of their classmates, giving him more than 30 gallons of can tabs to help pay for expenses related to his surgery, CBS Los Angeles reports.
The tabs, worth about $3,000, will help pay for Amir Walton’s expenses related to surgery on his ear, the news site notes.
“I am thankful for the school to do this for me,” Amir said during a school ceremony for the achievement. “Thank you guys for my tabs for my ear.”
Amir was born without his right ear fully formed, and although the surgery will not help his hearing in the ear, the surgery will reconstruct the ear by taking cartilage from other parts of his body.
“My initial thought is to cry. I’m so emotional about it. It’s breathtaking,” Amir’s mother said.
The surgery costs a whopping $40,000, CBS Los Angeles notes, but Shriners Hospitals for Children, where the multiple surgeries will take place, is known for treating patients regardless of whether the family can pay. The money donated by students will be used for related expenses.
“To have the support from the school is just like … it’s a blessing. That’s all I can say,” Amir’s father told the news station.
Read more at CBS Los Angeles.