by NIKKI ROBERTI
Lifestyles Reporter

When Beth M. Coggins told her Christian group about an elementary school student with cancer, they did not hesitate to help in Coggin’s fundraising efforts.

Coggins began collecting bottle caps for an initiative where one bag of bottle caps equals one free treatment of chemotherapy.

The Christian group, Intervarsity, conducted a boys vs. girls competition to help the initiative.

Rachel M. White, freshman graphic design major and White Residence Hall resident, helps coordinator Haley L. Lyda, freshman English major and White Hall Council President count various bottle caps for an alleged chemotherapy fundraiser Tuesday. Photo by Tommy Penick

Coggins, senior elementary education major, heard about the effort through Westwood Elementary School in West Jefferson, where she works as an intern.

“They told us at a staff meeting that one of the girls… has cancer and one pound of plastic bottle tops or soda tabs, if you recycle them, it will pay for one of her cancer treatments,” she said.

White Residence Hall Council President Haley L. Lyda heard from an acquaintance who had personal connections with a cancer patient and also collected bottle caps.

White Hall hosted “Floor Wars” to collect bottle caps.

The “Floor Wars” poster states one cap equals one free minute of chemotherapy.

According to a statement on the American Cancer Society Web site, while the origin of the hoax is unclear, after “extensive research,” the society deemed the collection of plastic bottle caps a hoax.

The hoax could have possibly started through an e-mail chain in Virginia, according to the site.

Sherrie A. Hunter, Director of Education at the Raleigh County Solid Waste Authority in West Virginia also confirmed the initiative as a hoax and called it an “urban myth.”

Westwood Elementary School had collected bottle caps previously for another child in a neighboring school, but had no idea which organization sponsored the collection, Coggins said.

Coggins said Westwood and another elementary school send their caps to Ashe County High School where the ROTC do “something” with them, and then split the money between two separate children.

Lyda, freshman English major, was also unaware of which organization was the sponsor, but was giving them directly to her acquaintance.

On the first day of collecting, one floor in White Hall had collected 200 caps, Lyda said.

“I will be very disappointed [if it is a hoax] but at the same time I will be proud of my girls because of how much effort they put into these bottle caps,” Lyda said. “I can’t help but be proud [of] all the hard work they put into it. It just shows how much they care about people in our community and how much they want to help.”

Meredith L. Trexler, freshman elementary education major, said she and her friends went through every floor’s recycling bin in Eggers and Newland Halls to help support Intervarsity.

Together they collected a grocery bag they estimated weighed over a pound.

Trexler said her main disappointment from the possibility of a hoax is that she could no longer help the little girl she heard about.

“I thought they were doing this for a little girl, doing something special for her,” she said. “I don’t really have any money so that was my money for giving back.  I’d just feel bad that I don’t have money to give her personally.”

Due to Westwood’s claim, Intervarsity will continue to collect the bottle caps for the girl, Coggins said.

Lyda said the spirits of the girls at White Hall would not be dampened by the news of the hoax and the “Floor Wars” would still continue with the end result prize of a floor pizza party.

“[Instead, we’ll] recycle the bottle caps and by giving to a cause, [we’ll be] helping the environment,” she said. “Even if not chemotherapy, then [we’re still helping] another cause.”

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