Tag Archive for: charlotte neuroblastoma

She was the love of his life…

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June marks a significant date as it is the month that Isabella lost her fight to neuroblastoma. This year will be 5 years since we lost her to this horrible disease on June 28th, 2012. The Santos family has been through their ups and downs in dealing with losing a daughter, sister, granddaughter, great-granddaughter, niece and cousin. But as you have most likely noticed, they have persevered… and they lead the push to fight for kids with cancer in Isabella’s honor. This month we will be sharing both the happy and raw times as we celebrate Isabella’s spirt and the legacy she left behind.

She was the love of his life..

Isabella and Daddy

“Even in the end, he did all the things I couldn’t do. He chose where to take her to be cremated because I could not know where that building was located in Charlotte. He picked out the beautiful gold box she was placed in, he paid for her final resting place, he spoke with the pastor, he bathed her after she died and carried her out of our house. There are things I was not strong enough to do, but he was. He didn’t think twice about doing them because for him, it was just more ways he showed his love for her.

He hasn’t been the same since she has left us. I don’t think he has ever experienced true love like that in his life. She loved him unconditionally and he has never loved someone as much as he loved her, including me. What they had was unique and every daughter should be so lucky to have a father love her the way that he did. He would of done anything to save her and she was the love of his life.” -Isabella’s Mommy

We can accomplish so much more if we fight cancer together.  Learn more about donating to the Isabella Santos Foundation.

He never takes it for granted…

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June marks a significant date as it is the month that Isabella lost her fight to neuroblastoma. This year will be 5 years since we lost her to this horrible disease on June 28th, 2012. The Santos family has been through their ups and downs in dealing with losing a daughter, sister, granddaughter, great-granddaughter, niece and cousin. But as you have most likely noticed, they have persevered… and they lead the push to fight for kids with cancer in Isabella’s honor. This month we will be sharing both the happy and raw times as we celebrate Isabella’s spirt and the legacy she left behind.

He never takes it for granted…

Sophia, Grant, Isabella and Daddy

“Father’s Day is tough. I try my hardest to make the day special for Stuart. I know for me, Mother’s Day is hard and can at times be painful. I hate to have him experience the same pain. I always try to ask him what he wants to do but he answers don’t consist of much other than breakfast with the family. We do cards and gifts to tell Stuart how much we appreciate him… but it never feels like enough.

Just last night as the two of us sat at dinner alone, I asked him if he wanted to write something about Father’s Day. It’s a weird post for me to write because I’m sure I could never communicate what he is thinking. But Stuart is a talker, not a writer. He could talk for an hour about what he is feeling about Father’s Day, but cranking something out on paper just doesn’t happen easily for him.

The interesting thing he said that resonated with me was how he felt like Father’s Day is all about thanking your Father for all they do. But in fact, he doesn’t want to be thanked. Just the opposite really, he wants to say Thank you to all of us for the gift of being a Father. He said how thankful he was to be a Daddy to our kids and that is what this day means to him. It’s the best thing he has done with his life.

My kids are very lucky to have someone who considers his role a true gift and he never takes it for granted. I’m confident that our kids will always be amazing people because of Stuart’s role in their lives. You can always see the love my kids have for him in their eyes. He means the world to them all.” -Isabella’s Mommy

We can accomplish so much more if we fight cancer together.  Learn more about donating to the Isabella Santos Foundation.

Her personality would be the anchor…

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June marks a significant date as it is the month that Isabella lost her fight to neuroblastoma. This year will be 5 years since we lost her to this horrible disease on June 28th, 2012. The Santos family has been through their ups and downs in dealing with losing a daughter, sister, granddaughter, great-granddaughter, niece and cousin. But as you have most likely noticed, they have persevered… and they lead the push to fight for kids with cancer in Isabella’s honor. This month we will be sharing both the happy and raw times as we celebrate Isabella’s spirt and the legacy she left behind.

Her personality would be the anchor…

Isabella and Don reading the paper

“One of the most precious moments with Isabella took place prior to the cancer diagnosis. It was about a year before that terrible October. As I look back…her personality would be the anchor for her struggles later. Isabella was visiting Katherine and I in Florida while mom and dad went to a wedding and left her with us for a week. Isabella required that she sit each day at the breakfast table and read the newspaper with me and she would not want to leave my lap until I had turned all the pages. Small as she was when Katherine was making dinner, Isabella had to be a part of the process. Isabella was so young, but so engaged with us. It is impossible to imagine then what this wonderful person would be forced to endure. Her inner strength has been the touchstone for our lives since. My big consolation is she is watching over us and filling our lives with love.”  -Isabella’s Grandparents, Don & Katherine Santos

We can accomplish so much more if we fight cancer together.  Learn more about donating to the Isabella Santos Foundation.

Daddy’s home…

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June marks a significant date as it is the month that Isabella lost her fight to neuroblastoma. This year will be 5 years since we lost her to this horrible disease on June 28th, 2012. The Santos family has been through their ups and downs in dealing with losing a daughter, sister, granddaughter, great-granddaughter, niece and cousin. But as you have most likely noticed, they have persevered… and they lead the push to fight for kids with cancer in Isabella’s honor. This month we will be sharing both the happy and raw times as we celebrate Isabella’s spirt and the legacy she left behind.

Daddy’s home…

Isabella and Daddy

“With Isabella being my first child… my favorite memories ever are around my “first time” fatherhood experiences.   When Isabella learned to speak.  When she learned to walk. Seeing her guide herself around the living room table, trying to figure out how to put one foot in front of the other were so unbelievably special for me. I was just so excited for her. I’ll never forget the dash to see who could greet me first when I walked in the door. Isabella, Grant and our lab Bailey would immediately stop what they were doing and run to hug me once Erin yelled out, “Daddy’s home”. Isabella would normally muscle out the other two to reach me first. Outside of our children’s birth, those moments in which she welcomed me home will stay with me forever and remain as some of my best moments on this earth.  I will forever hear ‘Daddy’s home” in her little voice in the back of my mind and heart.” – Isabella’s Daddy

We can accomplish so much more if we fight cancer together.  Learn more about donating to the Isabella Santos Foundation.

 

She should of been there…

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June marks a significant date as it is the month that Isabella lost her fight to neuroblastoma. This year will be 5 years since we lost her to this horrible disease on June 28th, 2012. The Santos family has been through their ups and downs in dealing with losing a daughter, sister, granddaughter, great-granddaughter, niece and cousin. But as you have most likely noticed, they have persevered… and they lead the push to fight for kids with cancer in Isabella’s honor. This month we will be sharing both the happy and raw times as we celebrate Isabella’s spirt and the legacy she left behind.

She should of been there…

“There are some things I just can’t do. Today is one of them. Her kindergarten class at Marvin Elementary school celebrated the new exciting frontier ahead of them that is Middle School. It’s crazy for me to think that I’m old enough to have a middle schooler. Especially with all the money I pay not to look like I do. I’ve watched them all from a distance over the last couple of years, wondering which group she would of been in. I must say, I even miss the drama that would of ensued with her friends and the talk of boys in my backseat. I skipped through all the heartache, pain and joy of having her in her last year of elementary school. I knew the class was going to be taking a minute during the ceremony today to remember her and both a financial and sentimental dedication would follow. I know the right thing to do would to have been there, and smile when they put her picture up on the screen. But I know in my heart I would have been scanning the room. Wondering if these kids are really touched by the loss still, or if the parents are feeling a little more grateful today when they see their son or daughter’s name being called out. Grateful they are not me. I appreciate her being remembered today but honestly, it’s a day I want to forget. Another milestone, stolen from us because we drew the short straw on life. She should of been there.” Isabella’s Mommy (Today, June 8, 2017)

Today, Isabella should have graduated from 5th grade. The impact she has left on her classmates and everyone around her holds strong… as evidenced today by the dedication her 5th grade class made to her. Yes, Isabella should have been there celebrating with all her friends. But her spirit and legacy is incredibly inspiring… and we thank Marvin Elementary (Union County, NC), her teachers and friends for honoring her to ensure she is never forgotten. Along with the dedication, the 2017 fifth grade class families organized a financial donation presented to ISF. We can’t put into words what this means to not only Isabella’s family…. but her foundation. A plaque remembering her will hang in the hallways among the hand-painted tiles that all of the 5th graders completed as their legacy class gift.

Forever a Marvin Mustang.

We can accomplish so much more if we fight cancer together.  Learn more about donating to the Isabella Santos Foundation.