On November 12 & 13, Hayden’s Heroes, Inc. hosted a Memorial Soccer Tournament at Old National Pike Park, Mt. Airy, MD, in honor of Hayden Boerum.

Hayden Finn Boerum was born on July 31, 2007. He lived his early childhood life as a bright young boy who went to Oakdale Elementary School. He loved playing with Legos and Matchbox cars, trucks, and trailers, listening to his iPod, and going on camping trips.

“Hayden was an energetic charming young boy who never let a day go by without his pearly white smile,” said friend and Class of 2019 member Lourdes Jack.

But as a young toddler, he began experiencing frequent ear and urinary tract infections.

His pediatrician discovered that Hayden had anemia, which is a disease that involves a decrease in red blood cells or hemoglobin.

At age 3, Hayden was diagnosed with a rare disease, Histiocytosis, caused by the overproduction of white blood cells, called histocytes. This can cause tumor formation and organ damage.

He went through blood transfusions, chemotherapy, and numerous procedures, including a double umbilical cord transplant.

Even while battling Histiocytosis, Hayden remained positive and courageous.

Sadly, Hayden died on March 29, 2015.

But Hayden’s story did not end when his life did. To raise awareness for Histiocytosis, Hayden’s Heroes, Inc., was created. The organization works to raise funds to be donated to research, providing education about the disease and helping families who suffer from it.

“The organization is made up of many family members of Hayden, and those people have hearts of gold giving everything they can to help other families going through the same disease as their young Hayden went through.” said Jack.

Hayden’s Heroes hosts many events in memory of the boy who suffered from Histiocytosis.

One of these events is the Memorial Soccer Tournament, where Lourdes Jack has volunteered to help at many times, “The Hayden’s Heroes tournament unites soccer clubs from around the state of Maryland to participate and enjoy the love of soccer that young Hayden had a fascination with.”

If you would like to show your support for Hayden’s Heroes by contributing to fundraisers and drives to find a cure for Histiocytosis, click here.