SELINSGROVE — Former students greeted Master Dave Burns with bows and applause Saturday during a kickathon to benefit his fight against cancer after defeating it 14 years ago.

“No hugs, handshakes and kissing,” said Burns who recently completed a second round of chemotherapy.

“Thanks for all you are doing. I am in an illusion of good health now. It will get ugly before it gets better,” said Burns, who owned Burns School of Tae Kwon Do where the event was held. With the kickathon starting at 11:30 a.m., $3,000 had already been raised by 12:15 p.m. with more participants expected in the afternoon.

By late Saturday afternoon, an estimated $5,300 had been raised, not including sales of baked goods, food, T-shirts and chair massages. Additional pledges were also still being tabulated.

Burns, 54, of Selinsgrove, urged the students to get back to kicking at what are known as “pork chop pads.”

“I don’t want you to cool down,” he said of the students ranging from age 4 to their 50s who collected money from sponsors to do kicks in 10 minutes.

“We’re overwhelmed,” his wife Pamela Brennan Burns said of the response.

John Moyer, 10, of Liverpool, did 550 kicks in 10 minutes. His mother, Terri, organized the bake and food sales. John has been taking classes at the Burns school the past six years. People could sponsor a certain amount of money per kick or for the total time.

Terri Moyer first suggested the school try to help Burns and his wife with expenses not covered by insurance related to a third bone marrow transplant he is facing.

“I told Terri we have held kickathons in the past and it all came together,” said Nathan Morgan, of Selinsgrove, now owner-operator of the Burns school. “I announced it and they took it and ran with it,” said Morgan, a master instructor with a fourth degree black belt.

Students from Morgan’s school as well as Eaton Tae Kwon Do in Riverside participated.

“Everyone you see here wouldn’t be here had it not been for Master Burns,” said Eaton who was a student of Burns when he opened his school in Selinsgrove in 1980. “Previous to that, there wasn’t a school in the area. There isn’t a student here who doesn’t owe or has been influenced in some way by Master Burns. All the students here are a direct lineage from his effort.”

Burns and Eaton hold sixth-degree ranking.

Eaton recalled when Burns was first diagnosed with leukemia. “It was a shock. He wasn’t the type of person you thought would have cancer. He was in his early 30s, very active, didn’t smoke and ate a good diet,” Eaton said. After Burns’ second bone marrow transplant, Eaton took for granted “that part of his life was over.” Two months after Burns served as master of ceremonies for a national tournament in Danville, he called Eaton to tell him his cancer had returned.

“I thought how could this be,” Eaton said.

Burns was diagnosed Aug. 10 with acute myelogenous leukemia, which is rapidly growing abnormal white cells that accumulate in the bone marrow and interfere with the production of normal blood cells.

While there have been some ongoing fundraisers and a Chinese auction planned Dec. 6, this was the first event held by the Burns school.

“Nathan said something that hit home. We are able to do this for Dave. There are a lot of people in the same situation. This is a wonderful thing with the economy the way it is and the interest and turnout,” Eaton said. “I owe my livelihood to him,” Eaton said of Burns he called “a stellar individual.”

Moyer said Pepsi donated soda, Perkins donated crackers for the soup they sold and Butter Krust Baking Co. donated rolls for the hot-dogs cooked by Morgan’s parents Alice and Donald Morgan of RR Sunbury. The baked goods came from friends and family of students.

Lynne Brandau, a student at the Burns school who holds a black belt, donated chair massages. “I was in the first kickathon many years ago here,” said Brandau who did upper body and arm massages for donations. She is a certified massage therapist who practices in Selinsgrove and who worked on athletes at Olympic Villages in Athens and Salt Lake City.

Troy Blue, of Danville, designed the T-shirts being sold. Writing on the front meant “indominable spirit” coined by Tae Kwon Do Grand Master Howard Kang of Florida and the back was printed with “Kickin Leukemia Club ’09.”

Burns said he underwent chemotherapy in August and in October and needs time for recover from that. “Geisinger has been wonderful — the doctors, nurses and support staff — they’re fabulous,” said Burns who lost his hair from cancer treatments in the 1990s.

The next step is waiting for the transplant, being coordinated with Geisinger, to be done in Pittsburgh. The transplant could cost more than $100,000.

There is also a cost to finding a donor. “The doctors said with my ancestry there should be no problem. There are 12 million more registered now than in 1995,” he said of his last transplant.

His first transplant was in 1993 with his own bone marrow. The second one was from a matched unrelated donor as will the third one.

While insurance will cover most of the transplant costs, the Burns don’t know exactly what will be paid for. Dave Burns hasn’t been working and his wife continues to work as manager of First National Bank in Shamokin.

After the transplant, he will have to stay in Pittsburgh for 100 days and someone will have to be with him all the time. They will be making the 200-plus one-way trip to Pittsburgh more times before the transplant operation is scheduled.

“We think a transplant can be scheduled right after the new year,” Pamela Brennan Burns said.

“I’m technically in remission but without a transplant, the cancer will come back,” Burns said.

A Chinese auction and silent auction to benefit Burns will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Dec. 6 in St. Joseph’s Parish Center, Milton. Items to win include a Nintendo Wii, a 32-inch flat screen TV, a DVD, a GPS, autographed book by Jodi Piccoult, plants, Longaberger baskets, a Brad Shoemaker print, appliances, electronics, a $100 Weis Markets gift certificate, cleaning services, retail items, rounds of golf, Amish quilts, Shade Mountain wine, a week-long stay in Florida, two Steelers prints, gift certificates, a Penn State football and a $100 Target card. The sponsor is the Knights of Columbus of Lewisburg and Milton. Food and beverages will be available. Items for the Chinese auction will be accepted through Dec. 5. To contribute new items, call Brennan Burns’ dad, Jim, at 523-6301.