"Super" Sam Santhuff wore a red cape sporting the Superman symbol as he went to St. Louis Children's Hospital on Oct. 1, 2013 for his first chemotherapy treatment. He continued to sport the cape and the symbol throughout the countless chemotherapy and proton therapy treatments and surgeries in his battle with cancer for more than a year.
Sam, 6, emulated the superheroes he looked up to as he battled cancer, a fight which ended. Sam died early in the morning on Friday, Sept. 19.
He would hug a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle stuffed animal as he fell asleep at home and in the hospital. Captain America and Spider-man visited him at St. Louis Children's Hospital. Images of these superheroes are pasted on the walls of his room.
While these titans provided symbols of strength to Sam, he became a real-life hero to so many throughout his journey to, as he said time and time again, "kick cancer's butt."
In a caringbridge.org post, Sam's mother, Cassie Santhuff, detailed Sam's last day - a day surrounded by family.
"We told him it was OK to fly high and that God was proud of him for the bravery he had here on Earth," Cassie wrote. "He squeezed our hands for the first time in days as he took his last breath and I told him one last time as he took his last exhale that I love him. I am so glad to have had the last few seconds with him ... I had promised Sam over a year ago, that we would do this together - every step of the way, I would be with him ... No matter what. I was and now I, along with Matt, Ava and the rest of our family, we feel lost and yet still relieved he's not in pain any more."
She continues to write that Sam battled cancer "without complaint for 13 months."
"We never wanted to see Sam in pain and in the last week, his pain hit new levels of horror and we found ourselves praying for his peace and comfort ... for God to call him home," she wrote. "We told him it was OK and not to be scared, but I don't think he was ... I think he knew all along (on varying levels throughout his fight) he would meet God soon. I believe he was at peace with it and held on for us more than for himself."
His journey started Aug. 26, 2013.
Sam, his father, Matt, and twin sister, Ava, picked blackberries earlier that month and came back home covered in seed
ticks. Sam was covered with the most - more than 100 - and about five or six were found on Sam's head. At first, Sam thought he had more freckles.
"Ava said something like, "Sam, you're freckles are moving,'" Cassie Santhuff told the Fulton Sun in January.
Fearing he could become sick from the bites, Cassie took Sam to the doctor who told Matt and Cassie to apply lotions.
Cassie and Sam shared a laugh as she applied the lotions, and Sam's head went back while chuckling. That's when Cassie saw a bump inside Sam's nose less than the size of a pea, but it grew bigger.
After a biopsy on the bump, Sam was diagnosed with rhabdomyosarcoma - a rare form of cancer that affects about 300 children in the nation annually, according to the U.S. National Library of Medicine.
Hospital trips, surgeries, chemo treatments and proton treatments - which led Cassie and Sam to Florida for specialized therapy - would follow.
On March 17, Sam was deemed cancer free. He was surrounded by family and friends that celebratory day as he rang the bell to sound his cancer was gone. After ringing the bell, Cassie wrapped a 13-and-a-half-foot long strand of beads around her son. Each bead represented a moment in Sam's fight. The glassy beads symbolized a time when Sam displayed an act of courage. A 12-hour surgery last fall earned him one of those beads.
With each high or low in his journey, Sam always kept faith.
In various posts to the support Facebook page, "SuperSam's Heroes," Cassie and Matt shared Sam's great love for God. The Santhuffs are members of First Christian Church and the twins have attended St. Peter's Catholic School. Both churches have helped rally the community in support of the family.
It was normal for Sam to stop and pray when he felt someone was in need and he would ask his family to join him.
The back of "Super" Sam T-shirts have Sam's favorite Bible verse, Philippians 4:13; "I can do all things through Christ who
strengthens me."
"Sam said that God said, "Everything is going to be OK,'" Cassie told the Fulton Sun in January.
A visitation for "Super" Sam Santhuff will be 4-7 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 23 at First Christian Church in Fulton at 6 Seventh St. The funeral will be at 1 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 24 at the church. Anyone wanting to wear a "Super" Sam T-shirt to the services is welcome to do so.
Following the funeral, there will be a balloon release as he's laid to rest at Memorial Gardens. Balloons will be available, and anyone unable to attend the funeral is still welcome to the balloon release as a tribute to Sam. Cassie said the balloon release will be child-friendly, and will show Sam how many people loved him.
"You see, Sam and I had talked about having an awareness event in September where we wanted to gather as many as possible and talk about the awful stats and need for more research for pediatric cancer ... Sadly, Sam had been too ill and we were never able to plan it ... I know he will love watching the balloons from above," Cassie Santhuff wrote.
Instead of sending flowers, the Santhuffs are requesting donations to continue the fight against childhood cancer. Donations can be sent to First Christian Church with "Santhuff family" written in the memo line.
"We will fulfill my promise to Sam to fight this beast of a disease ... We will fight for a cure ... Any donations will be used to help cover expenses and then research thereafter," Cassie wrote.
"Super" Sam supporters are now performing random acts of kindness in Sam's honor and have been posting their "pay it forward" stories onto the SuperSam's Heroes Facebook page.
"We love this and think it is the perfect way to keep what Sam was all about alive," Cassie wrote. "Be kind to one another, meet and love God, and remember there is nothing more important on earth than family ... That was Sam."
Pastor calls 'Super Sam' an inspiration
First Christian Church Rev. Ed Varnum said "Super" Sam Santhuff has taught the community that family and faith sustain people through difficult times.
"I think many people have learned a lesson in a new way about what strength comes from each other and from our faith and we need to carry that on," Varnum said. "Those people that have their children need to hug them and cherish them and love them, because the other lesson we've learned is how fragile and vulnerable we are."
Varnum said the best way the community can honor Sam is to love their families. Everyone's priority should be to cherish the people they have in their lives, Varnum said.
"He's been so followed through social media. People that don't even know them, know them because of that," Varnum said. "The comments that I've seen is how much his faith and how much seeing the family's strength has been a help to so many people. I just don't want us to lose that."
Varnum said Sam's passing has been a terrible loss. The long-term lesson, he said, is the beauty and the power of family and faith.
"Certainly the family needs to be kept in prayer, they've gone through a horrible time and they're going on through it, it's still there," Varnum said. "Certainly in this week ahead as they go through the service and saying goodbye in an official way, we need to come together and we need to pray for them."