How Paige Ramey became Grinnell's hometown hero

The story of Grinnell's Paige Ramey doesn't stop with her standout athletic career and win against cancer right out of high school.

During and after her treatment, Paige found a way to get back involved with her sports teams and in doing so, discovered a new passion along the way.

Diagnosed with cancer just after graduating high school, Ramey's plans for college had to change. Her mother, Bridgette Ramey says Paige planned to attend Fort Hays State University to study speech pathology.

"I was looking forward to college and getting out on my own and making new friends," Paige says.

Instead, she spent months getting chemo therapy treatments, recovering from a stem cell transplant and a major surgery to remove a cancerous tumor from her knee. The treatments were successful and Paige is cancer free.

Since she had to take a year off from school, she's been helping her former coaches while recovering at home because it wasn't long before she had the itch to get back on the court.

"I figured as good of an athlete and good of person she was, she would be an inspiration to the kids and it worked great," Wheatland High School basketball coach Cheryl Martin says.

Martin gave Paige an opportunity to help her coach the team.

Paige offers sports advice, but Martin and her players say they can always count on her for a good joke, as well.

Paige will be leaving the team this fall to attend college. She says she's learned something about herself she might not have otherwise.

She says she's planning to change her major to elementary education so she can help kids and hopefully land a coaching job.

Martin says she's happy and excited for Paige moving on, but will miss her training and having her around.