A teenager who only had a few months to live decided to spend his remaining time to gather money for a little kid who also had cancer in the hope that the child would be able to beat the cancer. When physicians informed 19-year-old Rhys Langford that his bone cancer was terminal, it was the worst news of his life. He started collecting money for Jacob Jones, a six-year-old kid he had never met, instead of reflecting on the fragility of human life.
Jones had neuroblastoma. After a year of being cancer-free, his family last month discovered suspicious tumors and rushed him to the hospital. Langford was very impacted by the little boy’s circumstances despite never having met him. “Rhys found out about Jacob’s story. He phoned me upstairs and said he was reading the article while sobbing in bed,” recalled Catherine, the young man’s mother.
He said that he couldn’t be saved, therefore he wanted to help Jacob in his cancer free journey.
As a result, he made the decision to contribute £1,000 ($1,355.96) of his life’s savings to the creation of a fund that would pay for the osteosarcoma kid, who was six years old, to have treatment in the United States, including surgery and chemotherapy. “He told her mum, “Mum, I would want to give some money to him. He is now six years old, but he has been sick since he was two years old. If someone could only come and rescue him, I’d be over the moon.”
“It was hard for me to comprehend that he was still caring about other people when he himself was so close to passing away,” stated Catherine about her son who never put himself first.
The teenager didn’t stop there, however. He even went so far as to create his own online fundraising page, which has helped Jones’ treatment fund raise more than £63,000 ($85,425). According to sources, while both boys resided in South Wales, they have never met. That didn’t stop the boy, who was close to death, from collecting all of his cash and creating a GoFundMe campaign for the little one.
“I was quite heartbroken after reading about little Jacob’s battle with cancer and later relapse. Even though I am aware that there is little that can be done for me right now, one of my many last wishes is to support Jacob in his battle against this terrible illness. Jacob, who is now six years old, has battled this illness his whole life. This is not how it ought to be! Jacob’s family is attempting to gather funds for therapy once again. I personally gave £1000 to his family, but it is still not enough. Help me, help Jacob, please!” Rhys wrote.
“My son, my baby, my fighter, my hero, has given up the battle. He put down his sword and passed away quietly at home with his loved ones at his side last evening about 7 o’clock,” his mother published a heartbreaking post on social media.
Even after his passing, Langford’s legacy lives on since Jones’ therapy is still being funded by the fundraising. Let’s honor this young brave man and the legacy he left after his life.