Jackson Fetter

Three-year-old Jackson Fetter will be remembered for his contagious smile and his love of all things Thomas the Tank Engine.

Jackson spent the past two years on and off battling acute myeloid leukemia — an aggressive form of cancer. He died shortly before noon Friday at Riley Hospital for Children.

Since his initial diagnosis in May 2010, Jackson endured three regimens of chemotherapy, two stem cell transplants and two rounds of radiation therapy.

And although the process proved ultimately unsuccessful, throughout Jackson’s fight, his story has drawn a massive showing of support from everyone from family to strangers.

“Simply put: We would not be where we are today without the Lafayette community,” wrote mother Erin Fetter in an email. They “have made the last two and a half years manageable.”

Jackson’s battle with the disease was extensive. The same month he was diagnosed, Jackson received a stem cell transplant from his younger sister, Kendall, who had been born just eight months earlier.

One year later, Jackson relapsed. He went through the process again, this time receiving a stem cell transplant from an anonymous donor on the national registry.

Each time, after a few weeks to recuperate, Jackson bounced back to his spirited self.

“He just enjoyed each day as it was,” said Brenda Kelly, Jackson’s grandmother. “He didn’t complain about feeling bad. If you asked him how he was, he would always say, ‘I’m good!’ ”

Jackson relapsed a second time in May 2012, and in June, doctors found leukemia in his blood.

This summer, Jackson’s family was left with an impossible choice. The family could pursue continued treatment, but the strength of the chemotherapy risked permanent organ damage. After lengthy discussions with doctors, the family decided to discontinue treatment and make Jackson as comfortable as possible.

“We are enjoying every single moment with him,” Erin Fetter said at the time, “and hope that others do the same with their children. Every day is a gift.”

The family has spent the past few months in the Stem Cell Transplant Unit at Riley. It’s there that Jackson died Friday.

Throughout the entire ordeal, said family friend Kandi Wessel, the Fetters have shown nothing but strength.

“Just the love they have for each other as a family,” Wessel said. “To me, they are amazing people. I don’t know that I could be as strong as they have been through all of this.”

The Wessels were among a handful that organized Jammin’ for Jackson, a fundraiser that raised more than $7,000 to help the Fetter’s with medical bills and other expenses.

Wessel said finding people to help or donate time was easy once they heard Jackson’s story. A few phone calls and posts to Facebook, and people that had never even met Jackson were offering to help in any way they could.

“It really does warm your heart that there are people out there that didn’t even know Jackson, who had no idea who he was, but were willing to give $10 or buy raffle tickets and give every little bit that helps,” Wessel said.

For the Fetters, the support has made all the difference. They look back fondly on a July 4 trip earlier this year to Disney World, made possible by the Make A Wish Foundation. The trip came together just days after doctors found chemotherapy had failed to deter Jackson’s second relapse.

Among the highlights for Jackson were feeding dolphins at Sea World and meeting Buzz Lightyear and Woody of “Toy Story” fame.

Erin Fetter hopes people will be motivated by Jackson’s life and story to find a cause of their own to support.

The Fetters have established the Jackson Fetter Memorial Fund at Purdue Federal Credit Union through which proceeds will be used to cover medical bills and other expenses with the remains given to Zoe’s Bone Marrow Buddies, a support arm of Riley Hospital.

“It doesn’t have to be cancer research or Riley Hospital, but doing something for others can truly make a difference,” she wrote.

Wessel, who was formerly afraid to donate blood, seems to have gotten the message. She said she’s following Jackson’s example.

“If Jackson could still do all this and still have a smile on his face and just love anybody, then I think I can go and have my arm stuck and give blood,” Wessel said. “That’s something so simple that takes 30 minutes of your time but can save someone’s life.”

There’s another message Wessel said families should take away from Jackson’s life.

“Cherish every moment you have with your children and each other,” Wessel said. “You don’t know how long you have. Enjoy the small things.”

http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/jacksonfetter