HopeKids provides relief for families with children battling cancer

MINNEAPOLIS -- HopeKids is a local nonprofit that connects families with children going through cancer with sports opportunities. 

Kids with cancer gather for a day of participation and fun. It might be to attend a game or it might be to run in a race. 

"So many of our kids are fighting literally for their lives and they're in the hospitals for an extended period of time. And so to have something fun to look forward to, really not gives you only hope, it gives you that fight to move forward," said Brian Anderson with HopeKids.

It's a good day for 7-year-old Toby Urlaub -- when he was only 2 years old, his life changed.

"And when we got back he had a big old bruise that was like this big on his shin. And so we're like touching, it's rock hard and you're like, that's not normal," said Toby's dad, Josiah Urlaub.

The news was not good -- Toby Urlaub had T-cell leukemia, a rare form of ALL leukemia. That's why this day means so much.

He looks and acts and it a normal 7-year-old.

"He is fearless by nature, leaps before he looks," Toby's mom, Elizabeth Urlaub, said. "He doesn't question whether it's a good idea. If it looks fun, he goes for it."

Because when your journey goes here, it takes a toll, in many ways beyond the treatment, on the entire family.

"The thing you don't know about cancer is it is so mentally consuming," Josiah Urlaub said. "You don't really understand the medical terminology and all the processes. Like you do your best, but that's what you depend the doctors on."

It's why HopeKids matters to siblings.

"Well, I want to support kids because they supported us all throughout this cancer year, which was pretty much probably around the worst time of my life," Silas Urlaub, Toby's brother, said.

As they gather to be active, the break is a gift from day-to-day life.

"It's just an opportunity to bring families together and the community together to celebrate and support HopeKids Minnesota," Anderson said.

For Toby Urlaub, it is now part of his journey -- one that he hopes involves a sport in his future.