Pie in teacher’s eye at Peters Township school
A second-grader shows her arm strength in nailing teacher Tammi Hanak.
Tammi Hanak gets creamed, to the apparent amusement of husband Dr. Robert Hanak.
Tammi Hanak wore a lot of white on April 20.
Even with elementary school students doing the throwing, there was a bit of a sting factor.
There also was the “ugh” factor.
Tammi Hanak certainly is a good sport.
Tammi Hanak and students pose for a post-pie picture.
Tammi Hanak and students pose for another post-pie picture.
Tammi Hanak gets creamed, to the apparent amusement of husband Dr. Robert Hanak.
Vote for the Woman of the Year! www.mwoy.org/pages/wpa/pgh17/thanak
Either Robert Garvey was having a bad aim day, or he was letting his students have all the fun.
The principal of Bower Hill Elementary School was first in line to throw a pie – actually, whipped cream on a paper plate – into the face of Tammi Hanak. But his lob from a foot or two away barely grazed the top of her head.
It was another story for the youngsters, though, who were mostly on the money as they adorned their teacher with frosty goo.
Hanak, a speech-language pathologist at the Peters Township school, on April 20 honored her promise to allow students in the classroom that collected the most money in a “Pennies for Pies” fundraiser to take a turn to toss. Laura Ann Kimutis’ second-grade class won the honor with $540, but Hanak also invited three students each from kindergarten, first grade and third grade to participate.
All told, Bower Hill students brought in some $7,000 on behalf of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, going a long way toward Hanak’s goal of raising $20,000 to mark her 20 years of being cancer-free.
She is up for Woman of the Year for the society’s Western Pennsylvania and West Virginia chapter. Each dollar raised counts for one vote in the friendly competition, which runs through May 20.
The North Strabane Township resident’s husband, Dr. Robert Hanak, and daughter, Canon-McMillan High School senior Marissa, joined in the Bower Hill festivities, which also included members of the winning classroom snacking on homemade apple pie.
Kimutis, who committed her own confectionery sneak attack after the kids were finished, commended her students for their strong support of the cause.
“It wasn’t just for throwing the pies in the face,” she said. “They really were motivated to raise the money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and to help Mrs. Hanak. I think some of the kids were shocked, actually, that she came in and told her story. Kids think of cancer as something that you don’t get better from, so they found it hard to believe that she had had it, and she was a survivor. I think it motivated them even more to bring money in and help others to survive.”
And, hey, they did have plenty of incentive leading up to the big day.
“Of course, they were excited,” Kimutis said. “Who doesn’t love throwing pies in people’s faces?”
For Tammi Hanak’s Woman of the Year page, visit www.mwoy.org/pages/wpa/pgh17/thanak.