09/01/2026
September 1 — Childhood Cancer Awareness Month 🎗️
Just three short years ago, this was my reality…
I remember writing these words from the PICU, scared and heartbroken, still hoping that somehow this was just another hurdle we would get through. What I didn’t fully understand at the time was that this day would change everything.
Colton had just completed another round of immunotherapy. We went into every treatment knowing there could be side effects, but hoping the treatment that was supposed to fight the cancer would give us more time and more hope.
Instead, his little body was telling us it couldn’t take anymore. His heart had suffered severe damage. His ejection fraction had dropped to 30%. Suddenly he was surrounded by tubes and wires again—an NG tube, a catheter, monitors everywhere—and the little boy who had already endured more than anyone ever should was exhausted.
And then came the realization we never wanted to face, the treatment meant to save him had become too harsh for his little body to survive. He could no longer continue the immunotherapy.
Looking back three years later, those words hurt so bad. We had no idea where the road ahead would take us. We only knew we wanted to get our Colton healthy enough to come home and be with his family.
This is why September matters so deeply to me and so many other going through this same reality. Childhood cancer awareness isn’t just about wearing gold. It’s about children like Colton who endure treatments so toxic that sometimes their bodies simply cannot take another dose. It’s about parents sitting beside hospital beds trying to understand impossible choices. It’s about desperately needing treatments designed specifically for children—treatments that can save their lives without destroying their little bodies in the process.
For the next month, and through the year, I’m going to share facts, memories and pieces of Colton’s story. Some will be difficult. Some will be beautiful. But all of them matter. Colton wasn’t just a statistic, he was my baby! And he still is 💛
This September, we GO GOLD for Colton.
We GO GOLD for every child still fighting.
We GO GOLD for every child we carry in our hearts 🎗️
