BOZEMAN – There was a time when the Shrauger family didn’t know if Caden would see his 10th birthday.
He was diagnosed at the age of three with an aggressive form of childhood cancer.
Caden’s mom, Pam Shrauger said, “when your three-year-old is crying and screaming and you know he’s very, very sick and he’s getting poked its hard to watch. There aren’t words to describe how hard it is to witness your kid go through cancer treatment.”
Caden was poked over 150 times and had 35 blood transfusions during his treatment.
“It hurt, but now I get poked, eh who cares? ‘Are you strong and tough now?’ Yeah after all those times I got poked,” Caden said.
After fighting cancer most of his life, the family is excited to be able to celebrate another birthday.
“It’s always amazing. Caden’s birthdays don’t go by lightly. We are thankful for each and every one of them and this year is no exception,” Pam said.
Get Poked for Caden is a blood drive that happens annually.
Having blood drives like this and giving blood is what saved Caden’s life and makes more birthdays possible.
But not every birthday for Caden has been a typical childhood birthday.
“I was really sick, I ate one piece of cake on my fourth birthday, less than that. Like one bite because I was so sick. ‘Are you going to eat a lot of cake on your birthday this year?’ Yeah!” Caden said.
As years continue to pass, Caden and his family thank those community members who come to donate.
“It’s really humbling, honestly. It’s a beautiful thing to witness to be able to see people give back and to know that something as hard as what Caden went through can show some good too,” Pam said.
Caden is looking forward to his 10th birthday this weekend and being able to celebrate by going camping with his friends and family.
