You would have thought that school was out for the year by the screams and cheering in the gymnasium packed with school kids. Instead, the middle schoolers keen for an egg bombing were shouting as the victims of the attack were marched into the gym. 

The teachers and administrators at Powell Middle School, were directed to folding chairs at center stage in the gym, sat down and dressed in cheap, colorful rain ponchos. Then they were pummeled with a mix of hard-boiled and fresh eggs. It was every student’s dream to be picked from the crowd to exact the fun-loving onslaught. 

The event was a fundraiser for Jeremy Johnston, who is fighting cancer. An area historian, Johnston is the Hal and Naoma Tate Endowed Chair of Western History and the Ernest J. Goppert Curator of the Buffalo Bill Museum. Also the managing editor of the Papers of William F. Cody, Johnston has published two books about the history of Powell. 

His wife is Amanda Johnston, who teaches sixth grade social studies. 

The Building Leadership Team, a group of student leaders, chose the idea to help Johnston with medical expenses. 

Middle School Principal Kyle Rohrer took the brunt of the abuse. Vice Principal Chanler Buck was also largely targeted. Both left with a new yellow and egg whites goo do as the egg supply ran out. 

Math teacher Brian Bonander also was the recipient of a wet egg, but his hair seemed oddly unaffected. Zachary Coombs and Cody Kalberer, both math teachers, also volunteered to take the abuse. 

“Humor is the best cure,” said Johnston, who laughed with gusto every time yokes went airborne.

“As a former Powell Middle School student, I wanted nothing more than to crack an egg over my principal’s head,” he said of Principal George Ribble. “I never thought I’d see this in a million years.”

Principal Rohrer brought the pain on himself. 

“I was on recess duty when I said [to BLT members], ‘Let’s crack some eggs on some heads. Might be fun and raise student interest,’” he said prior to the event. 

The students ran with the idea once they found a cackleberry apocalypse was possible. The idea exploded in a big way, raising more than $1,260. Some students were so determined to get a chance to splat an egg on their “favorite” teacher’s head that they purchased multiple tickets. One student, Bruce Preator, was rumored to have purchased 300 tickets. He was rewarded with three eggs, although disappointingly, all three were hard-boiled.

“Everybody really took to it and were very generous,” Rohrer said. Teachers also joined in by donating for the privilege to wear blue jeans to school Thursday, and many parents added funds to the pot.

The response was overwhelming. 

“We’ve never done this before,” Rohrer said, adding “We like to mix it up.”

Johnston was touched by the outpouring of support after the event.

“I want to thank all the middle school students and their parents and family for supporting us,” he said. “It was wonderful.”