SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — Kickapoo High School is in mourning for their teacher, cheerleading, and poms coach Amy Barron.
Barron passed away unexpectedly due to an unforeseen health complication.
At Kickapoo’s first home football game, Friday many Kickapoo fans were wearing gold, but many others were sporting pink in honor of Barron.
“She was always very positive and that was just the impact she had on our school, on on the girls, on the cheer team, and the dance team past and present,” said Kickapoo Principal Dr. Bill Powers. “She was just a positive person, someone you wanted to be around.”
Barron was a family and consumer science teacher at Kickapoo High School. She was also a cheerleading coach and a poms coach…
“This was her life.” Dr. Powers said. “You know, she loved her boys. She loved her family. And then she loved the Kickapoo family through and through.”
Assistant Cheerleading coach Nikki Love saw Barron’s dedication firsthand.
“Amy was everybody’s cheerleader,” Love said. “She was a light to every single person that came into contact with her. You couldn’t be around Amy without smiling.”
The T-shirts made in memory of Barron had part of her motto on the front.
“She would say, you know, you can continue to complain, or you can be the sunshine,” said Love. “And that is the motto that she lived by.”
The community has already started to surround Barron’s family, two sons who attend Drury University and one who is a Kickapoo senior with support.
“The outpouring of support, not only here and at Kickapoo with our students, staff, and families, but in the community as a whole,” Powers said. “It’s just been it’s been amazing.”
Community support and sunshine are both themes Love hoped to see at the Friday night football game.
“We just hope to have a lot of smiles. We know that that’s what she would want.” Love said. “She was our comedic relief in many situations. And like I said, she is a ray of sunshine. So, we hope to just bring that tonight.”
A GoFundMe has been started to help Barron’s sons with funeral expenses.
