This year's Seventh Annual Race for Virginia and Friends, which has raised more than $200,000 for cancer research since its inception in 2002, will honor the memory of Saxon James Kiesewetter of Harmony. Saxon was one month shy of his 14th birthday when he died June 2, 2007 of Ewing's sarcoma, a rare and aggressive cancer of the bones and soft tissue. The survival rate for Ewing's sarcoma is low, with most people not making it past the two-year mark.

The Race for Virginia is held annually in Cranberry on the Fourth of July. It began in 2002 in memory of Virginia Clark, a 9-year-old third-grader from Seven Fields. Virginia was diagnosed with neuroblastoma and fought the disease intermittently for seven years before she died March 13, 2002, one month after her ninth birthday.

Proceeds from the race are donated to pediatric cancer research at Children's Hospital in Pittsburgh.

Coincidentally, it was a July 4 holiday in 2005 when Saxon was first taken to the emergency room with symptoms of his illness.

"About six weeks prior to July 4, Saxon had complained of shortness of breath," said his mother, Diana Litzenberg, a nurse at Grove City Medical Center's Med-Surg Pediatric Unit.

"He was such an active kid, always outside skateboarding, riding dirt bikes or his quad or snowmobiling. I didn't even think twice about it," she said.

She at first chalked up his complaints as the result of a normal child's everyday bumps and bruises. "But they [can] end up being much more involved, such as Saxon's were."

Two weeks later, Saxon's battle began when he underwent surgery for a mediport, which allows easy access for chemotherapy treatments, to be implanted into his left chest wall.

Following four rounds of chemotherapy, Saxon had two of his ribs removed and replaced by artificial ones. He then had 10 more rounds of chemotherapy followed by the removal of two more ribs and half of his diaphragm. After radiation treatments in December 2006 and extremely high doses of chemotherapy to wipe out any potentially bad cells in January 2007, a scan had shown that he was in remission, and Saxon's oncologists began to put together a game plan for stem cell treatments.

"They had thought they had gotten it all, but there was an apparent muted microscopic cell," his mom said. In the middle of the stem cell treatments, the doctors realized that the cells they had collected to regenerate Saxon's immune system were contaminated with cancer cells. Even though they had only seen this happen once or twice before, the cancer had started to travel and had metastasized.

"Saxon's personality helped him to get through his treatments. He was an easygoing kid who went out of his way to be with friends, and he had a very soft heart. I always called him the Mayor of Harmony," his mom said with a laugh.

"Saxon was close to his grandparents and had become a pretty good cook with his 'Nanny' [grandmother Beverly Hutchison, of Cranberry]. He made chili, stuffed peppers, and was always creating some new type of omelette," she added.

With spending so much time in the hospital, Saxon started doing crafts. Not that he particularly liked doing them, but it was something for him to do. He was awaiting the day that he could go hunting, but unfortunately, it never came.

While undergoing his stem-cell treatments, Saxon spent a lot of time on the computer in his room at Children's Hospital. One thing he accomplished on-line was to find a 7 ¹/₂-week-old St. Bernard puppy, whom he named Daisy, to be a companion for him when he eventually got home.

"We have other dogs, but I honestly know that Saxon wanted her to be a good companion for me and to take care of me ... sort of an inspiration for me," said Ms. Litzenberg.

Saxon made it to the first eight weeks of eighth grade at the Seneca Valley High School campus. When his condition worsened, his older brother, Shane Archey, came home to help, leaving his junior year at Indiana University of Pennsylvania as an Exercise Science major. Because Saxon was able to get some pain relief from chiropractic treatments, Steve decided to change his career path and dedicate his profession to his brother's memory. He is now enrolled in his first year at Logan School of Chiropractic in Chesterfield, Mo.

The night before he died, the Kozy Rest Campground in Marion near Harrisville, dedicated the night to Saxon.

"He rode around in a golf cart, which he always wanted to do, and I couldn't believe the jokes he told, the family secrets he let out, and the gigantic hoagie he ate," his mom said with a chuckle.

The next morning, Saxon awoke and told his mom that he was going to walk that day.

"He walked all right," she said. "But he walked in heaven."

The Seventh Annual Race for Virginia and Friends will be held in Saxon Kiesewetter's memory at 8 a.m. July 4 at Cranberry Township Municipal Park. Registration fee is $20 and can be taken online at www.raceforvirginia.org or in person today from 4-6 p.m. at the Jaycees Shelter in the park off Route 19. Registrations will also accepted from 6:45-7:45 a.m. on race day at the Jaycees Shelter. For more information, contact race director Bob Markovich, at 724-772-7429 or bmarkovich@zoominternet.net.