She was 10 years old and facing a death sentence.

Three-and-a-half years ago the pain in Taylor Dudley's hip was so intense she couldn't walk. On St. Patrick's Day 2007, after a battery of tests, doctors at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, Tenn., diagnosed the Scott City girl with stage 4 non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, the most severe level of the cancer of the white blood cells. This year, that type of cancer will kill an estimated 20,000 people, according to the National Cancer Institute.

"I thought I was going to die," Taylor said. "My mom was very stressed out."

Sara Bradshaw, a seventh-and eighth-grade science teacher in Scott City, gets a section of her hair cut off by Cortney Stubenrauch, of Style Studio, during an assembly at Scott City High School on Friday, Oct. 29, 2010. Bradshaw was joined by students in donating their hair to Locks of Love. Bradshaw organized the donation in honor of her student Taylor Dudley, who has survived the most severe level of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. (Kristin Eberts)

Taylor fought through the sickness and pain of two years of chemotherapy, attacking the cancer that was attacking her. She underwent rounds of bone marrow treatments, and spent a year away from home at the Memphis Ronald McDonald House in a suite with her mother.

Today, Taylor is winning her battle. Her cancer is in remission, and the Scott City eighth-grader said she feels great.

"I feel like a normal child," she said.

Cora Williams, of Style Studio, holds up the 10-inch section of hair she cut from tenth-grader Bryanna Sykes, left, during an assembly at Scott City High School on Friday, Oct. 29, 2010. Standing behind Williams and Sykes are, from left to right, fellow donor and tenth-grader Alexis Spriggs, Style Studio's Cortney Stubenrauch, and junior high science teacher Sara Bradshaw. Bradshaw was joined by students in donating their hair to Locks of Love. Bradshaw organized the donation in honor of her student Taylor Dudley, who has survived the most severe level of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. (Kristin Eberts)

Taylor's childhood was not the normal experience. Along the way, she lost her strength, lost weight, and the chemo claimed her hair. Judging by her big smile and bright eyes, the cancer couldn't take her spirit.

It was for Taylor and the thousands of children like her that Scott City science teacher Sara Bradshaw and eight students gave of themselves.

Sitting before a school assembly Friday, Bradshaw and the students, girls ranging from first grade to high school, let the scissors do their work. They each donated at least 10 inches of their hair to Locks of Love, a not-for-profit organization that provides hairpieces to financially disadvantaged children suffering from long-term medical hair loss from any diagnosis.

Friday marked Bradshaw's third time in the Locks of Love shearing chair.

The seventh- and eighth-grade teacher admits she is attached to her bouncy, curled hair, which, until Friday, nearly spanned the length and breadth of her back. But Bradshaw said she thought about her courageous student and her trials.

"I just can't imagine going through something like that and being a kid," she said of Taylor's battle with cancer. "She's my inspiration.

"It's just hair. It will grow back."

After more than three years engaged in the fight for her life, Taylor is having the time of her life. On Wednesday, she flew to Baltimore for an appearance on Food Network's reality show "Ace of Cakes." The trip, booked by the Make-A-Wish Foundation, put the young baking enthusiast in front of the camera alongside her mother and grandmother, filmed for an upcoming episode. Taylor is a fan of the show.

"It's funny, and I like the people," she said. "I love to bake. I want to be a pastry chef when I grow up."

Taylor never availed herself of the services of Locks of Love. When the chemo treatments robbed her hair, she said she wasn't interested in wearing a wig.

"I didn't care what I looked like," she said. 'I got a lot of looks but I didn't care."

But Taylor said she sees the power in the Locks of Love campaign. More than that, she's warmed by the strong show of support from her teacher and fellow students who care enough to give of themselves.

"I think it's really good, and it's a good cause," she said.

mkittle@semissourian.com

388-3627

Pertinent address:

3000 Main St., Scott City, MO