When Kaleb moved with his family to Warren, Michigan, he had to deal with being that new kid in town. He was a quiet and shy second-grader, and all the new faces didn’t help him a lot with that. But then he met K.J., and the two 11-year-olds hit it off just great!
They both liked the same things and they got along so well. They just plain “GOT” each other, which is often hard to find with other people. And it certainly didn’t matter that they were of different races.
Even their mothers, both of them single, bonded with each other. It was such a good relationship for all concerned. And it didn’t even matter to Kaleb that his buddy was born with leukemia and had to have surgeries often, and his allergies would sometimes prevent him from going outside to play. He was there for him; they were there for each other.
But… last December, right around Christmastime, young K.J.’s condition took a turn for the worse. It actually became… a LOT worse. He was suffering from congestive heart failure and his doctors said he would need an immediate heart transplant. No heart, however, ever came for the transplant, and in May, Kaleb and his family were called to the hospital. His buddy, his playmate…. his best and only real friend, was dying… and the end was near.
Young Kaleb said a tearful goodbye to K.J., and soon after… the young boy died.…..
K.J.’s family buried him in a family plot, but they could not afford to put a headstone on his grave. Their son’s death devastated them, and now this… they couldn’t even give him a headstone.
When Kaleb found out about this, he started asking questions. He wanted to see what, if anything, he could do to help his friend’s family during their grief. So he asked his mom how much a headstone costs, then he started doing odd jobs around the neighborhood; he started collecting pop bottles for their recycling deposits; and then he set up an account asking for donations so K.J. could get a headstone.
The goal was set at $2,500. And in a very short amount of time, Kaleb and his mom called K.J.’s mom over to their home, and presented her with the money to buy her son a headstone.
Says K.J.’s mom, LaSondra: “I cried because it was unexpected. I cried because I’m trying to figure out things from day to day. I can see his final resting place. I have a place I can go to be with him. It’s a bittersweet thing because it’s finalizing everything for me. I’ve wanted to get his headstone, but at the same time it’s making everything final for me.”
As for Kaleb, he’s trying to get by the best he can, and, according to his mom, Kristy, he has not found another friend.
Says Kristy: “I believe it’s hard for him because he’s afraid. He doesn’t want to lose someone else.”
