My Last Days: Meet Zach Sobiech

Zach Sobiech is a 17 year old diagnosed with osteosarcoma, a rare form of bone cancer. With only months to live, Zach turned to music to say goodbye. Zach turned 18 years old today (May 3rd, 2013) and continues his fight against cancer with a smile that can change the world. Happy Birthday Zach! You are in all of our prayers!

Zach's song, 'Clouds' is available on iTunes and other online music stores and that proceeds benefit the Zach Sobiech Research Fund of Children's Cancer Research Fund http://www.childrenscancer.org/zach

Zach Sobiech passed away May 20, 2013. Our hearts and prayers are with his family and friends. We are forever touched by his story. Thank you for sharing your life and music with us, Zach. You are dearly missed and loved.

SoulPancake presents, in collaboration with AFG Productions:
Director/Producer: Justin Baldoni
Producer: Ahmed Kolacek
Producer: Sam Baldoni
Associate Producer: Fouad Elgohari
Editor: Olly Riley-Smith
Special Thanks to Dirty Robber
DP: Kieran Murphy
Cam Op: Sam Rosenthal
Grip/Gaffer: Erik Christensen
Sound Recordist: Jordon Justice
Composer: Jamey Heath
Colorist: Kurt Nishimura
Mixed by: Jamey Heath
VFX: Abdullah Nabil
Cam Op: Kraig Adams
Cam Op/DIT: Emerson Boergadine

Songs:
Flowers in her hair - The Lumineers
Clouds - A Firm Handshake
For My Grace - Original song from Zach Sobiech
Sandcastles - A Firm Handshake

Special Thanks to:
Nissan North America, Inc.
Northcott Hospitality
Carlson Hotels/Country Inn & Suites
Minnesota Vikings
Houlihan's
Daily Grind
Foundation Content
Ken Nutley
BMI
Kobalt Music
DualTone
Hot Head Productions

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[Music]

>> Zach can't stop writing lyrics.

There are so many songs he wants to leave behind.

With only months to live, his song called "Clouds"

was born.

♫ I fell down, down, down into this dark

and lonely hole.

♫ There was no one there to care

about me anymore. ♫

>> [Zach] I think every teenager out there feels invincible and they'll, never admit it.

It's the not the kind of invincible like Superman.

It's the kind of invincible like,

"I'll see you in five months."

I thought I was invincible.

I was ready for college, pretty much.

And I was planning out way ahead,

and it turns out sometimes you can't do that.

My name is Zach Sobiech.

I'm 17-years-old, and I have osteosarcoma.

I've been told I have a few months to live, but I still have a lot of work to do.

I want everyone to know.

You don't have to find out you're dying to start living.

[Music]

You know, most people live kind of in the middle -- in between like a dream come true and you're dying.

And it's -- it is a very comfortable place to live.

I'm living on the two extreme ends; so you have really, really good days

and you have really, really bad days.

>> [Laura] Zach has always been incredibly empathetic and compassionate.

At this basketball game I was kind of laughing about how one of the players had kind of a funny run.

And he goes, "Yeah, but he's really good at --"

And then he listed all these things.

And I thought, "Awww."

He's just always looking for the good in people, and I think he's taught all of us that's how it's done.

>> [Ally] I would say that Zach is a testament to the fact that things are okay

when you believe in something greater than yourself and the world.

>> You can be with Zach and just by sitting there with him, feel better.

He's got -- I don't know how to describe it.

He's got this aura about him.

>> [Zach] What makes you happy is seeing someone else smile because you put it there.

That's what awesome about living in this world.

It's that you can help people.

I like the structure of our family with two guys, two girls for the kids and mom and dad

because it kind of evens everything out.

>> [Laura] Grace has always been his baby.

>> [Grace] Zach is like the other half of me.

All we need is to be there like in the same room with each other, and that's enough for us.

I'm thinking about my life without Zach.

It's really hard to think about it.

Like, I really get, like sick to my stomach when I think about that.

>> [Laura] Zach had been going through the eighth grade, and he and his sister decided to go for a run.

And he came back from the run and he told me, "Mom, my left hip hurts."

So, we went in for an MRI and at this point still I'm thinking cancer was still not on my radar at all.

>> [Zach] They went in and found out that it was cancer.

It was osteosarcoma.

And it was so unbelievable, honestly.

>> [Grace] I was upstairs in the kitchen,

and I just went upstairs and I cried.

And I just said that I've got to live life like, well, Zach's going to die tomorrow.

>> [Zach] My mom walked in on me once, and I was laying on the ground because I didn't want to

associate my bed with being sick.

>> [Laura] Five days after he finished chemotherapy, he had his routine CT scan of his chest,

and they found tumors in both lungs.

She told us six months to a year.

>> [Zach] I just didn't understand that.

Like, it didn't make any sense to me.

>> [Laura] We did have an option of surgery,

but that would mean they would have to take his left leg and half of his pelvis,

and he wouldn't even be able to sit up.

That's when we got to the point where we have to make decisions about quality of life.

>> [Zach] With the hospital it's the most sterile place in the world,

but you just do not feel clean there at all.

And it was tough being there because you just -- you felt totally disconnected.

>> [Laura] He decided, "I don't want to be in the hospital all the time."

"I want to be out with friends. I don't want to feel sick, and I want to be home."

>> In a house like this where we have six people and four kids,

part of time time I enjoy Zach is just when we are alone -- just sittin' there.

We could be watching a movie.

We could be talking cars or whatever.

>> Zach likes to dream big, so he kind of got into cars and car magazines and stuff

and that was one thing he would do in the hospital.

>> I would sort through the cars and would be like,

OK, which one is the least expensive but has the highest performance?

Nissan GTR is like, oh, it's perfect.

I've dreamt of that car for years.

>> So, we have a little tiny surprise for you.

>> I don't like surprises.

>> Oh, I think you're gonna like this one.

>> What is it?

Holy crap!

Are you serious?

>> You get to drive it for a week.

[Laughing]

>> [Grace] You're driving me places.

>> [Zach] Oh, my god.

>> Hey, Zach, what's up?

You like that?

>> Yeah!

>> It's pretty impressive, huh?

The look on his face was so cool.

And when Zach lights up, it makes everyone happy.

>> [Zach] It's like being dunked in cold water and not being able to breathe but in a really good way.

[Music]

>> It wasn't the car.

It was the experience the car created and the joy that Zach receives from driving it.

And the joy I receive from being with Zach when he got to drive it.

>> [Zach] Being able to experience these things things it helps a lot.

Because you can either sit in your basement and wait, or you can get out there and do

some crazy stuff.

[Music]

>> When we found the cancer in his pelvis, I said, you know, maybe you should start writing

some letters.

>> [Zach] Music is a way I can express myself without having to burden everyone else.

>> [Laura] I was cleaning up downstairs, and there was a lot of paper laying around

with different scribblings on it and I picked one up and I read it and it was "Clouds."

[Music]

>> Sammy and Zach have been dear friends for many, many years.

They're song writers together.

That's how they communicate with each other.

>> [Sammy] Our musical thing has like -- it's like really become something,

and it's become a part of us.

There's going to be nobody like him to do it with again and, like, that's going to be really hard.

>> [Zach] I find that with my situation it is unchartered ground at the other end.

I have closure, and she won't have closure.

>> [Sammy] There are very, very, very few people I love as much as I love Zach.

[Guitar music]

>> [Zach] My closure is being able to get my feelings into these songs,

so they can have something to remember me by or, you know, lean on when I was gone.

>> For me it's Zach's way of saying, "I'm okay."

Saying good-bye.

And I'm just so grateful that it's there because I'm gonna need it later.

>> [Sam] His music is kind of like a record of his like how much he cares for us.

>> [Grace] There's a little song that we wrote me: "For my Grace."

So, I'll keep that always with me constantly.

[Guitar music]

>> Yeah, we'll stop there.

>> Okay.

I love you.

>> Aww, I love you too, Grace.

See that's like the first time ever.

>> Is it really?

>> Pretty much.

Yeah, she's pretty cool.

I think with my diagnosis we've become a better and stronger family.

We all love each other just that much more.

Because when you go through stuff like that, you go through it together.

>> You have to stick together as a family.

I mean that's imperative.

Because, you know, we've been there ever since Zach was first diagnosed.

We've been there as a family.

We are all together, and we have to make it through as a family together.

>> [Ally] How I remember my brother?

Happy.

Always smiling.

Always limping around with his funny little walk.

That's as simple as it is -- happy, I guess.

>> My friends -- I don't know if they've accepted, you know, me being terminal or not.

They know that if they just treat me the same everything will be fine, honestly.

>> He someone you can trust is going to smiling the next day despite his condition.

>> He is kind of just like a light in this school.

If I have a bad day, it's not actually really a bad day if I am complaining about something.

It's all about perspective, I think.

>> He will always live on in my life because of the values he's taught me, the memories we've had.

They are so ingrained in who I am as a person.

>> Amy -- she's a smart girl.

We knew he was terminal when they started dating, and she knew that.

She sat down with her mom and talked through it and what they decided was,

"Would you date him if he didn't have cancer?" and she said, "Yeah."

She's really helped him through some hard times.

>> One of our first dates was -- we planned a picnic, you know, just in a park somewhere.

>> I knew he had, um -- he was going in for scans that day.

>> We get the results back and my doctor walks in and she's pretty quiet and she looks pretty serious.

And it's like, well, it can't be that bad.

I mean, come on.

And she goes, "So, you've got a collapsed lung."

I'm like, "Oh, okay."

>> I broke down crying because it was like the first time that it was real that he had cancer

because before it was, everything seemed normal.

>> I was like, can I at least go to the picnic and then come back and have surgery?

And they were like, "No, we need to do this now."

>> He was so devastated because all he cared about was getting to that date.

>> Yeah, I was pretty angry that I had to miss the picnic because who doesn't like a good picnic?

I mean, ya' know? It's awesome.

Stupid lung.

[Music]

>> Good morning!

>> Good morning.

>> Why are you all dressed up?

>> Oh, yeah, it's for school.

>> For what?

>> We're not going to school today.

>> Where are we going?

>> I'll tell you.

>> I want to know where we're going.

>> Just - no. Start driving and I'll tell you.

♫ And now we demonstrated it to the cops. And all the things we said. We were self-assured.

♫ Cause it's a long road to wisdom, but it's a short one to being ignored.

♫ Be in my eyes. Be in my heart. Be in my eyes ai yai yai. And be in my heart.

♫ So now I think that I could love you back. ♫

>> I almost burst into tears just because it was so perfect --

a picnic basket of cold pizza which pretty much defines our relationship right there.

♫ It takes a man to live. It takes a woman to make him compromise. ♫

>> [Amy] We know what we both would want in our future.

We know that we love each other just the same amount.

Well, we've talked about getting married and having kids and our jobs.

We do that a lot when we have bad days.

So, like, when we start to cry, that's when we'll sit down and just plan it all out.

>> We'd have four -- three or four kids.

We haven't decided yet.

But I kind of want four because you can have two boys and two girls then.

Because that's what we have in our family, and it worked out pretty well.

It's one of those things that, you know, it's like your ultimate dream kind of thing.

Most people just ignore it, or most people think, "Ah, it'll never happen."

And, you know, mine, obviously, probably won't.

>> Um, I think the moment I'm most scared about is leaving the hospital after he's gone

and knowing that he's not coming with and having to walk out of there.

>> I will actually love her to death -- till my death.

But, yeah, it's -- that's the thing.

It's like, "why not get married" because, you know, til death do us part and I'm dying

so we better get on this.

That kind of thing.

But, yeah, I do love her to death; and I will forever.

[Music playing]

>> Do you know a dance to this?

No?

>> You can walk down the isle to this.

>> Okay, Sobiech family.

Everyone come downstairs.

So, I'm Justin, and I'm the director, and we are here making a little documentary

about your amazing family member.

And I came here and I was expecting to meet a great kid who had a cool YouTube video and was inspiring,

but I was not expecting to meet a 17-year-old that would change my life.

So, when I first contacted your mom, I told her I wanted to make a music video for you,

which we just, unfortunately, could't do.

But what I was able to do was reach out to a few people, and I just told them your story.

And I told them I wanted to do something for you because you've done so much for us.

What resulted was something very special.

I just want you to know,

this stuff is not happening because you're dying.

It is really because of the way you are living.

I just want you to know that.

>> [Bryan Cranston] Zach, such a beautiful song. This is for you.

[Music - Clouds]

>> Look at that.

[Laughing]

♫ Well I fell down, down, down into this dark and lonely hole. ♫

>> You can just tell that they all loved Zach's story and admire him so much

and it was amazing to see.

>> He was in awe.

Like, he could't believe it, and none of us could.

♫ You were sitting there holding a rope. And we'll go up, up, up, but I'll fly a little higher.

♫ It won't be long now, it won't be long now. ♫

>> The most bizarre thing I think I've ever seen.

Craziest feeling in the world.

>> Seeing everybody who loves him at the end -- it made me cry.

>> It really makes me want to keep on going.

[Music]

>> Aww, Grace.

Grace you've been my best friend for 14 years, and we've done so much together.

It's going to be tough goin', but you got to keep being strong.

You got to kick some butt on the basketball court too.

You take them to the championship.

Sam, oh, you've been the best big brother anyone could ever ask for.

You've given me so much knowledge.

You've helped me through so much and I think it's important that you know that I love you

because being guys I don't think we say it too much but I do love you so much.

Ally, squeeze from the back of the toothpaste bottle.

[Laughing]

I'm going to miss you so much because you've always kept me strong in my faith and everything.

Mom and Dad, you are the best parents that anyone could ever ask for.

I could only wish I could have kids and raise them like you raised me because you did one hell of a job.

You're the best parents anyone could ever ask for, and I love both of you so much.

And thank you for being my parents.

[Guitar music]

Life is just really beautiful moments one right after the other.

All of these experiences are super, super cool.

All of them are giving me just a little bit more closure on everything and kind of accepting everything

a little bit more.

[Music]

>> He's shown me that it's not all about the grades you get or how cool you are in high school.

It's about doing what makes you happy and no matter when you are going to go to live life

to the fullest every day.

>> It's really simple, actually.

It's just try and make people happy.

Maybe you have learn it when it's time.

Maybe you have to learn it the hard way, but as long as you learn it you're going to make

the world a better place.

>> I think that's actually one of the blessings of cancer is that you kind of come out of denial.

And so in doing that things are better.

That life is richer.

Everything means more.

Beauty is more beautiful.

He's a beutiful person.

And I'm am so happy to have been Zach Sobiech's mom.

>> Death is just another thing on the agenda kind of.

Yeah, it's scary, but the only reason it's scary because you don't know

what's next or if there is a next.

So, it's kind of like sitting in the dark.

So, you can choose to be freaking out in the dark and thinking, okay what's out there?

Or you can just relax and fall asleep and just be happy and content with everything.

I want to be remembered as a kid who went down fighting and didn't really lose.