HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY SCHOOLS PHOTO
Representatives of Hillsborough County Schools and family members gather around Richard Canales-Calles March 25 following his special high school graduation ceremony at the LifePath Hospice House in Ruskin. From left are Lennard High School migrant liaison Olga Perez, Richard’s brother Julio Steven, Hillsborough County School Board Chairwoman Melissa Snively, Richard’s mother Veronica, his brother Oliver, Richard, WWE pro wrestler and philanthropist Titus O’Neill, Lennard High School Principal Denise Savino and Hillsborough County Schools’ Superintendent Addison Davis.
Local teen’s final wish granted just days before his passing
By LOIS KINDLE
Richard Canales-Calles always dreamed of being the first in his family to graduate high school and was determined to do so, even after he was diagnosed with bone cancer in the fall of 2018.
After undergoing surgery and being treated for the disease, the 18-year-old Lennard High School student continued to do his schoolwork while in the hospital, bent more than ever on earning his diploma.
COURTESY PHOTO
Teenager Richard Canales-Calles in happier times.
By February, Richard wasn’t responding to treatment; the cancer was worsening and had spread to his lungs. Doctors gave him a couple of months to live.
He was sent home to Wimauma, where his health continued deteriorating. On Monday, March 23, Melanie Davis, executive director of the SouthShore Chamber of Commerce, and Olga Perez, migrant liaison for Lennard High School, contacted a hospice social worker to visit him at home. After seeing Richard, she immediately arranged for him to go to Lifepath Hospice in Sun City Center.
The next day, Davis and Perez knew it was urgent to make Richard’s graduation happen while he was still alert. “We felt it was the last opportunity we had,” said Davis, who immediately contacted school officials.
On March 25, thanks to the efforts of the chamber, the Helping Hands in SouthShore, Perez and other representatives from Hillsborough County Public Schools, Richard became the county’s first graduate of 2020.
“I went into his room about 9:15 a.m. and kneeled on the floor beside his bed,” Davis said. “I told him we had a surprise, that he was getting his diploma and graduating that day!
“Richard kept wiping away tears from his eyes, and you could see how proud he was of himself,” she continued. “He just beamed.
Superintendent Addison Davis, School Board Chair Melissa Snively and Lennard High School Principal Denise Savino presented Richard with his diploma in his room at LifePath Hospice in Sun City Center that day. He was surrounded by his mother, Perez, migrant resource teacher Phillip Rivera, Melanie Davis, and his siblings.
HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY SCHOOLS PHOTO
Outside of Richard’s hospice room window, friends and supporters held a congratulatory banner, and hundreds watched online as the emotional graduation ceremony was live streamed through the Helping Hands of SouthShore Facebook page.
Outside his window, friends and supporters held a congratulatory banner, and hundreds watched online as the emotional ceremony was live streamed through the Helping Hands of SouthShore Facebook page.
WWE pro wrestler and philanthropist Titus O’Neill stopped by to congratulate Richard and offer words of encouragement.
“None of this would ever have happened if Olga hadn’t advocated for him,” Davis said.
That evening, a blood clot was discovered in Richard’s leg, and he was transferred from hospice to Johns Hopkins. In the middle of the night, he called Perez and his mom, the two women who had most supported him throughout his life, fearing he was going to be intubated.
Although that never happened, Richard died March 27, two days after he graduated and two days before his 19th birthday.
O’Neill donated $6,000 to Richard’s family towards his burial expenses. He was interred April 2 at Wimauma Church of God Cemetery.
“He was always positive; he always felt he would defeat the cancer,” Perez said. “He planned to go to school and learn to repair airplanes. He was the last of everyone to give up.
“After his graduation ceremony, I stayed back to meet with his mom,” she added. “Richard was eating a spicy chicken sandwich from McDonald’s and listening to music on his headset. He seemed so content. I will always remember him this way.”