Racing world responds to dying boy's request for stickers to cover casket

An 11-year-old Iowa boy dying from leukemia has received an overwhelming response to his request for racing stickers to cover his casket.

Caleb Hammond had been undergoing treatment at Blank Children's Hospital in Des Moines following his diagnosis of acute lymphoblastic leukemia in February 2017. Once the treatment stopped working, his family faced the difficult decision of whether to continue with more painful treatments or bring him home to Oskaloosa to live out the rest of his life.

"There were some other options left, but they were going to make him sick and do harm to his body," Caleb's uncle, Chris Playle, told Linh Ta of the Des Moines Register. "They decided to call it quits, and come home and be a kid and do the things he hasn't been able to do the last year and a half."

Caleb has been an avid racing fan since he was two years old. His love for the sport started when he would visit his uncle's house across from Southern Iowa Speedway.

Since Caleb put out his call, people from the racing world and beyond have been sending him stickers and other gifts. A GoFundMe page has also been set up to assist his family with bills and other expenses.

"We’re trying to get a bunch of (stickers). We're trying to decorate his casket," Playle said. "We're just trying to do as much as we can with him while he's here."