NOTE: The eighth grade yearbook staff from the Highlands Middle School will feature an article each quarter on the Hilltopper Online.

Through tough times, science teacher Melissa Trimbach would tell herself:

“When the sky is dark, look for your stars. They will shine bright and guide you.” 

Trimbach is a sixth grade science teacher at Highlands Middle School who has recently been diagnosed with Aspergillosis and Cushing’s disease, she also has had severe asthma her whole life. Her health journey has been far from easy and predictable from doctors appointments to emergency surgeries. 

In April of 2024 she was admitted to the hospital due to her asthma, following the last few months of the 2024 school year. This stay was brief but she was unable to return to school the rest of the year. In the summer, she was then out again for all of May, and returned to the next school year in November. In August she began getting blood transfusions of white blood cells for her immune system and physical therapy twice a week to regain strength in her legs, helping her walk, stand up on her own and climb up and down stairs.

Her treatments were going well and she thought she would be able to return to work but everything changed in January of 2025, when she was diagnosed with breast cancer. This led to her receiving initial then emergency surgery, 4 rounds of chemotherapy, 20 sessions of radiation and many doctors appointments. This occurred from March 4, 2025, to the start of the 2025 school year. She then finished up radiation within the first few weeks of school.

“There were days when walking, standing or finding any energy or carrying a thought felt impossible.” 

During her time in the hospital and out of school her students would write her letters and make her drawings throughout the year. These were her “stars” throughout the tough times. When she was in the hospital these letters would help her stay positive and felt like her “stars” during chemo and radiation. She still reads her letters from time to time and it helps her realize that teaching is her calling and a gift to her. Former students who had her in 6th grade still remember her and all the fun memories from her class. Some of her former students shared what their favorite memories from her class were and they all had a common theme.

Drew Sempier (8) had Mrs. Trimbach for science in 6th grade, 5th period.

 “My favorite memory was when she would tell us a bunch of stories about her life,”  Sempier (8) said. 

Trimbach always had fun with her students, making them smile and creating memories.

“My favorite memory was on Halloween she got a giant Barbie box and we all took photos in it and it was so fun,” Lily Green (8) said.

Trimbach has left a lasting impact on her students that will never be forgotten.  

Once she was cleared to teach again she got back to school as soon as she could and it was like she never skipped a beat. All of her fellow teachers and students were caring and understanding. She missed teaching so much and even when she wasn’t physically strong enough to go back to school she still would always tell her doctors she was ready to go back. While going through her treatment she didn’t feel right. 

“I have always felt like a verb so when I was still weak it just felt like I wasn’t myself.” 

When teaching at school,  Trimbach still wasn’t strong enough to last the whole day standing and teaching. She would fix this by lying on her counter in the classroom to give her body a break during her planning periods. After many days of the problem occurring, the word of this happening passed around to all the teachers. 

Collectively all the staff wanted to find a way to help Trimbach out. Social Studies John Warford realized he had a cot laying around in his house unused, which made the perfect solution for  Trimbach. In between classes and whenever she wasn’t feeling well she could now just lay on her cot for her body to rest. 

Trimbach showed her appreciation for the doctors that cared for her by bringing them in small plastic ducks. 

“I passed out tiny ducks to everyone that helped me along the way. That kept me feeling positive” And that “No one has ever said no to these tiny little pieces of plastic,” Trimbach said.  

These tiny ducks would help to keep her optimistic and looking forward to the future. She will even give these ducks to her students as prizes throughout the day to encourage them. 

Trimbach wanted to return to teaching so badly that even after her doctor told her she wasn’t ready she wanted to come back to the classroom and build more connections with her students. What helped her through these tough times was setting small goals for herself. One of these goals was to be done with chemotherapy by the time her granddaughter was born. After long hours in the hospital and late nights she soon achieved that goal. Her next goal is to be able to take care of her grandkids and make lasting memories with them.

Trimbach’s cancer treatment has been slowing down and she is still working to get back to herself. Her triumph through illness and dedication to her job and to the people around her is truly inspiring.

This story was originally published on The Hilltopper on December 15, 2025.