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10-Year-Old Boy Who Struggled With Rare Cancer Receives a Special Funeral Worthy of Any 'Superhero

10-Year-Old Boy Who Struggled With Rare Cancer Receives a Special Funeral Worthy of Any 'Superhero

"He’s crammed more into 10 years than a lot of people can cram into 100."

One 10-year-old Ohio boy who died last week from cancer received a funeral worthy of a true superhero Saturday.

Thousands gathered to support his family members as Kyler Bradley, 10, was laid to rest at Rose Hill Cemetery in Fairfield Township Saturday. Kyler, who had been diagnosed with an incurable form of cancer known as Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma (DIPG), passed away Tuesday after a six-month battle, according to WOKV-TV.

For her son's final farewell, Rebecca Bradley wanted to do something special for him that would honor his memory and incorporate some of his favorite things: superheroes.

Captain America, Thor, Spider-Man and Wolverine showed up at Kyler's funeral and helped act as pall-bearers.

"He’s crammed more into 10 years than a lot of people can cram into 100," Rebecca said, according to WOKV, adding that her son "had a good life" and "loved with everything he had, he loved everybody in it."

"It is my honor to share Kyler with the world," Rebecca said, adding that he had been a "hero" in her life, according to WLWT-TV. "I have loved him from the moment I laid eyes on him from the moment I laid eyes him when he died in my arms. We locked eyes and we never let go until he took his last breath."

Kyler inspired thousands of others as he bravely fought his battle with the devastating cancer that struck former Mount St. Joseph University basketball player Lauren Hill, according to WOKV. Less than 10 days after his diagnosis, Kyler became wheelchair-bound as the tumor attacked his brain stem and weakened his nervous system’s functions. He soon became bloated and required a ventilator to even breathe.

"The miracle was his healing in heaven, total healing, but the miracle was also exactly what he wanted — to bring people closer to God and to bring people closer to one another. What more can you ask? That’s a legacy," said one of Kyler's father's coworkers, Stan Budke.

Some members of Kyler's church designed T-shirts bearing his name, saying "Kyler Strong," according to WLWT. Many wore the shirts at his funeral as the superheroes carried him to his final resting place.

"They brought that little boy into our life and he did amazing things,” said Tracy Schaeper, another one of Kyler's father's coworkers at Ford Motor Co., according to WOKV. Schaeper added that it was "very cool" to see how Kyler raised his community's awareness of DIPG and did a lot more for people "without even realizing it."

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Follow Kathryn Blackhurst (@kablackhurst) on Twitter

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Front-page image via Shutterstock

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Kathryn Blackhurst

Kathryn Blackhurst

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