A special school assembly was held at Harrisonville High School Friday morning in Harrisonville, Missouri near Kansas City.
Students with the art club raised money to surprise their science teacher, John Magoffin, with colorblind glasses.
Magoffin, who’s been colorblind since he was a child, said it was an indescribable feeling when he put them on.
“It's like living in a world with the lights off and you've always known them to be off, and somebody turns them on and just very few words to describe the intensity,” Magoffin said. “I can actually see more than two colors on a rainbow -- I'll be able to correctly instruct my kids on what color they're making things. I'll be able to cook meat for the first time without burning it!”
Through a special fundraiser called Cupcakes and Canvas, the art club was able to purchase the glasses.
“I can't imagine what he could've seen just then as he put them on,” art club student Randi Buerge said. “But it was a great feeling, but just overwhelming to be able to do that for him.”
“Now he can see and it's amazing,” art club student Jadyn Gilbert said. “It's exciting. Just imaging him going outside for the first time, I think it'd be an amazing experience.”
It’s an appreciation Magoffin said he’ll remember for a lifetime.
“Yeah I'll never forget this. I'll never forget this,” he said. “For a student body to do that, even though I don't know all of their names, I will never forget them and they were reaching out to my family, it makes you feel like part of a community, part of a family.”
Magoffin said the first thing he’ll do when he gets home is bring his wife a big, colorful bouquet of flowers.
