FORTVILLE — Sophomore David Bundy was inspired when he learned about traits linked to genetics in his science class.
His teacher at Mt. Vernon High School, Dennie Mitchel, shared with his students that he had inherited protanopia, or red-green colorblindness, from his maternal grandfather. The revelation came during a discussion about genetics and chromosomes, and Mitchel joked — as he has for years — that his students should take up a collection and purchase him a pair of corrective colorblindness glasses.
David, a sophomore, took it as a challenge.
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He got pledges from his classmates and checked with principal Greg Roach to make sure it was all right for him to raise money. His first donation, $1 in quarters, came from a student on his bus ride home.
In a matter of weeks, the young man had gathered all the money he needed to make seeing all colors a reality for his teacher. He found a way to purchase the glasses at a discount as well, he said.
He raised some $329, the cost of EnChroma colorblind glasses, and purchased the fit-over frames for his biology teacher. On Wednesday, David, 15, surprised his teacher with the glasses, a brightly colored drawing of a deer made by classmate Sydney Nichols, and balloons, as well as a letter from classmates.
David said his teacher is patient and kind, and he works to make sure his students have a thorough understanding of the material he’s teaching. Mitchel has even been known to postpone a test by a day to better ensure his students are prepared.
“I love Mr. Mitchel, and I wanted to bring color in his life,” David said. “He’s a great teacher and a funny guy.”
Mitchel had discussed his love of hunting and how his colorblindness made it difficult, David said; that was what inspired him to try to raise money for the special shades.
Mitchel kept his humor during the surprise event, joking around with the students and saying, “I’m not ugly crying, but I’m crying.” When he explained his condition, he encouraged his students, who are studying for their final exams today, to speak up and explain how such genetic traits are passed along.
Mitchel said he’s not completely colorblind, but most pastel colors look gray and some things he knows are brightly colored, like fall leaves, look washed out to him, he said.
He said he looks forward to seeing the leaves change in the full spectrum of color. He also said the special eyewear will help him while he’s hunting, because his protanopia makes finding felled deer difficult.
He was surprised his students decided to raise the money for him to have the EnChroma glasses.
“I know it was a significant amount of money,” he said. “I looked into it at one point and said, ‘Eh, I’m not getting them.’”
He said the show of kindness from his students reminded him that while teachers can give students a bad rap, things like this prove they’re kindhearted.
Roach said he wasn’t surprised to see David taking steps to surprise his teacher.
“He is very generous and kind, and I’m extremely proud of him,” he said. “He just illustrates the kind of students we have here at Mt. Vernon.”
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Color blindness is a usually an inherited condition. Red/green and blue colorblindness is usually passed down from parents or grandparents. The condition results from anomalies in the two types of cells found in the retina, rods and cones. Rods work in low-light conditions and influence night vision. Cones work in daylight and perceive color in reds, greens and blues. The cones work together to help the brain interpret colors. Colorblindness is caused by defects in some of the cones or a misfire in the way the brain receives information from them. Red/green colorblindness is the most common form. People who have it don’t merely confuse red and green: Any color containing red or green will look different.
Source: www.colourblindawareness.org
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