(STERLING, Kan.) — Residents in Sterling say it's the people that make this small community 'One of a Kind'. It's a common theme in small towns, but a Sterling teacher quickly learned there was a lot to truth behind the statement.
Susan Brown moved to Sterling seven years ago and hardly knew anyone. Then in one day, the town of Sterling became family. "I started teaching in August and was diagnosed in October," Brown said.
At the age of 35, she was diagnosed with stage three colon cancer. And as a new teacher, she didn't have sick days. She says that's when the community took over. "The teachers donated 80 plus sick days of leave to me and were willing to give more." The help continued at the house she and her husband bought. It wasn't quite finished, so the town pulled together and did the work for them. "The community came, the lumber yard brought the lumber, wives brought the coffee and they finished it one day," she said.
Brown is now cancer free and back doing what she loves. "I felt like god put us here for a reason. I can never thank the people of this town," she said. And that's why she knows first hand Sterling is 'One of a Kind'.
