In a deeply touching act of friendship, more than 50 students walked nearly 2 kilometers to a hospital to surprise their classmate battling cancer, just hours before he passed away. Dressed in their school uniforms, they visited their friend who wouldn’t make it to graduation by clicking one final photo that captured not just a moment, but a lifetime of love and goodbye.
The group of students met their classmate, Ren Junjie, on May 17, who was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma and had to leave school to undergo treatment in another city.
The 15-year-old student was given a goodbye by his former classmates and teachers of the Yilong Middle School in Sichuan province.
Watch video
More details
As Ren was unable to attend classes or take part in graduation festivities, the educational institute made sure he wasn’t forgotten on one of the most important days of his school lives.
On what turned out to be the final day of his life, Ren received a gentle and powerful surprise. His classmates, along with a few teachers, marched to the healthcare, bringing with them the joy and spirit of graduation. Together, they helped him wear his school uniform and wheeled his hospital bed outside to the hospital grounds, where they posed for a graduation photo.
Letters and basketball for Ren
The idea for the group picture came from one of the teachers, but the entire class agreed with it and visited Ren with letters filled with encouraging messages and best wishes, and a basketball signed by all the students.
There was no school stage or grand celebration. But the hospital grounds, surrounded by friends, became Ren Junjie's stage for a graduation photo.
Visuals from the emotional get-together are now going viral across Chinese social media platforms and melting netizens.
