The sounds of music fill the air in John Buford's classroom at First Flight High School and Middle School during the week. Buford, the chorus director at the school, is back in the schools one year after he was diagnosed with leukemia.
“We had just finished celebrating my anniversary in the hospital room, and the doctor came in shortly after we finished dessert and told us that I had acute myeloid leukemia," said Buford.
The news came just two weeks after he was named teacher of the year and led to almost a year of receiving treatment in Durham.
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“I was conditioned to receive a stem cell transplant, which happened the day after Valentine's Day, and I was able to come home and begin my recovery here in May. ...I think it's pretty incredible what they can do with medicine and I'm so blessed to have received my brother's stem cells," said Buford.
Though Mr. Buford was away, the Outer Banks community made sure he knew they were here to support him.
“My hospital room was littered with cards from floor to ceiling. It was incredible. The Outer Banks just became a beacon of light and hope and support that shone all the way 180 miles west to Durham. It was really an incredible and powerful experience to have that support network from back home. It meant the world to me," said Buford.
Though this journey is still going on, he has his sights on making a full recovery.
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“It's more of a crawl than a marathon to get to where you're normal again. The hope is that I will be fully healthy again. There's some precautions you have to do, as with any transplant. So, I'll just be careful," said Buford.
Some of the most special moments from the last few months have been being at the June graduation and being back in the classroom for this school year doing what he loves.
“Singing has been something that has given me great joy throughout my life, and my ultimate goal is to inspire a passion in the students that they can carry with them for the rest of their life," said Buford.
Though he’s received many messages over the last year, he had one to share of his own.
“I learned from this experience to always have hope and to appreciate every moment that you've been given. I guess that's why they call it the present, because it is gift to appreciate.”
