Day 9, Wednesday

This is how I remember Dylan. He is such a cute, cute little boy. Full of energy and mischief. Whenever our families got together, it was all we could do to either keep up with all the kids, or hope the house stayed standing while we let them play. We have known his family for a very long time. We met the parents before any of us were married. In March, 9 year old Dylan was diagnosed with a rare and devastating cancer, dipg. Dipg is a tumor located on the middle of the brain stem. It grows among the nerves and therefore, is inoperable. This aggressive cancer primarily affects children and the overall survival is nine months. There have been no advances in treatment options in thirty years. I believe that knowledge is power. The more people who are made aware of this cancer, the more people there are to support and encourage research, and the more people there will be to pray for the many families affected by this cancer.

Tuesday morning, Dylan passed away.

Our love and prayers extend to Mandy and Ryan and the rest of their family.