Helping give Sam the farewell they deserve.

Hey it's Sarah Rudge. For those of you that know our family, you know that our oldest child Sam was diagnosed with Osteosarcoma in September 2023. Sam underwent knee replacement surgery and many months of chemotherapy. I took a leave from work to support them and we thought that they had won their battle with cancer in May 2024. Sam went back to school in September 2024 and we were looking forward to them graduating high school even if it was a year late. Sam's regular scans were going well, but unfortunately in March 2025, we found out that Sam's cancer had returned and was now in their lungs. Sam underwent lung surgery in May 2025 and we were very hopeful. The surgery went very well and 2 weeks later Sam went to Prom and we were looking forward to the future and Sam going to Algonquin for Illustration! It seemed that the universe had other plans for Sam and only 2 weeks later we found ourselves in the emergency room where Sam was fighting for their life. We found out that Sam had developed Leukemia and there weren't any treatments available. Our beautiful 18 year old was going to be taken from us way too soon! In total Sam fashion, they continued to fight and were able to open their eyes and talk again. They continued to improve and we looked at moving to palliative care to make Sam's final days more comfortable than the ICU. It has now been 5 weeks in palliative care and Sam continues to amaze everyone with their strength. It has certainly shown the power of calm environment during illness. We are certainly grateful for any additional time that we are given with Sam!

As happy as that sounds, we are still being realistic and know that the end is on the horizon. While we are in a good mindset, we have started to plan for Sam's end-of-life. Sam is involved in the planning and we want to make sure that they end their life on their terms and that they are remembered the way they want to be. We quickly realized that funerals are much more expensive than we originally thought. We have a small insurance policy for Sam, but definitely not enough to cover everything. We were prepared to go further into debt to commerrate Sam, but many people who love us and Sam have asked for ways they can help out. We in no way expect help and even creating this account is way out of my comfort zone. I am trying to get better at asking for help and as usual, Sam is helping me to grow as a person.

If you would like to contribute in another way, I have created the email samsarmy27 at gmail dot com, for anyone who would prefer to send an e-transfer. My ultimate goal would be to send anyone who supports us a sticker or a print of Sam's art. It would help me feel better about accepting help. If we do end up raising more money than we need for Sam's funeral, we will be making donations to Roger Neilson House, as well as the Terry Fox Foundation through my school's fundraising link. I want to continue Sam's legacy and impact through both of these amazing organizations.

Thank you in advance for helping our family during this difficult time!

XOXOX Sarah, Greg, Sam, Zoey and Piper