Jack was born on November 24, 2003. He was always a strong, healthy, sweet spirited baby and toddler. The third of four children. As he grew older his confident personality started to shine. He enjoyed video games, math, reading, and playing outside. As he got older he found a new love in baseball. Jack started playing T-ball at the age of 5. He was all over the field, smiling, thinking he could cover every position. Jack was an amazingly gifted athlete and excelled at pitching. He definitely left his mark on the baseball field and within the baseball community. He was an amazing student, a kind and gentle friend, sarcastic, quick-witted and loved by everyone who met him. In May 2017 Jack was originally diagnosed with a gluteal muscle tear of his left pelvis. As time passed, the pain increased and his mobility was becoming more limited. On August 2, 2017, Jack was officially diagnosed with high-grade Osteosarcoma of his left iliac (pelvis). As a family, we were devastated. Jack started chemotherapy right away and was told there would be a major surgery to remove the tumor.
Jack battled a warriors battle on a daily basis. Smiling, crying, laughing, with fear, with confidence he bravely accepted every treatment as if to win the fight for his life and we had every hope he would beat the ugly beast of childhood cancer. Jack had a left Hemipelvectomy on October 19, 2017. His left iliac crest was removed and Jack made the choice to not have it replaced. Recovery was intense and painful. His fear was he would never get on the mound again. His fear was he would be confined to a wheelchair the rest of his life. His hope was that he would be cured of cancer. His kindness was giving to others even in his agony.
In December 2017, just a few days before Christmas, Jack took his first steps. He cried and said, “I can walk.” There was a complete determination on his face and in his spirit. However, there was a major setback when Jack developed pain in his spine. It was discovered that Jack’s tumors had metastasized to his Spine at the C6-7, T1-2. We were told there was nothing more that could be done, chemotherapy would not work, and an operation to remove these tumors was impossible. This was the worst case scenario. “Am I going to die?” he asked his doctors and they said “most likely”. It was hard to say how much time Jack had, but he was able to spend time in Hawaii with his family and take a trip to LA to meet his favorite player Buster Posey from the San Francisco Giants who were playing the LA Dodgers.
Jack attacked every challenge with tenacity. He continued to talk about giving back by starting a Lego Drive for Doernbecher Children’s Hospital, where he received his treatments. Jack had an engineers mind and he loved creating and building Legos. He talked about starting a scholarship program for high school baseball players. He wanted to help other cancer families, as ours was blessed. He was always thinking of others up to the very end. He was an amazing kid and on May 18, 2018, at 6:36 am Jack Steven Schumacher took his last breath in his mother’s arms and into the arms of Jesus. In death, Jack donated his eyes and blessed two recipients with eyesight.
Jack wanted to start this foundation and “pay it forward” by blessing other families struggling with their own warrior journeys. Jack’s baseball nickname was “Shoe”, not because of his last name, but because he could never keep his cleats tied. His coaches were always on him about tying his shoes. It just stuck. So he was known as the kid named “Shoe”. Jack was a true hero; brave, loving, kind, smart, handsome, and funny. A giver and a beautiful human being! He is missed with every breath we take and his legacy lives on through his family, friends, and The Team Shoe Foundation.