Holy Cross Community Rallies to Help Beloved Teacher Find Liver Donor

After a routine colonoscopy led to a life-changing diagnosis, Holy Cross High School French teacher and dean Blaine Palmer has spent nearly a year undergoing treatment for colon cancer that spread to his liver. Now, surrounded by the support of students, colleagues, family, and friends, Palmer is searching for a living liver donor — what doctors say could help make him cancer-free.

Five Decades Later, Holy Cross HS Remains Second Home for Teacher

It’s probably a good thing Ronald Vallar is a history buff. After all, he’s a part of the history at Holy Cross High School. It’s where he went to high school as a teenager and where he’s taught for 40 years. And at the age of 80, he has no plans to slow down. 

Best Friends’ Special Bond Rewarded With Surprise Gift During Graduation

Eighth-grade graduates Izabella (Izzy) Gamarra and Grace McKenna have gone through life side-by-side, and their journey together isn’t over. The pair became friends in kindergarten at Sacred Heart Catholic Academy in Bayside and have been inseparable ever since — especially after Izzy was diagnosed with a golf ball-sized brain tumor, at age 7, before starting second grade.