Submitted by Jenny Linenberger
Sophia Linenberger, Hays, is currently battling Ewing’s sarcoma cancer. She has been battling since she was 15 years old. She is now 22 years old and has been battling cancer for about seven years and seven months. She is currently on her fourth battle. She recently had to change the chemotherapy she has been on due to it drastically damaging her kidneys and causing neurotoxicity to her body.
She has been taking a new chemotherapy since the end of June. With this change in chemotherapy, it is almost like Sophia is battling her fifth time with cancer, even though she is not. It seems like this because her new chemotherapy is more harsh than the last one (as if she had relapsed).
The Linenberger family is from Hays. However, Sophia receives all of her cancer treatment at Children’s Mercy in Kansas City. With this being said, they travel to Kansas City very frequently. Sophia is now using a wheelchair due to having extremely fragile bones. She has extreme inflammation, torn muscles, myositis, and edema in her hip. This has caused her to be in a wheelchair.
She very recently found out that with her new chemotherapy, she will need to have an additional shot every week in the Children's Mercy Hospital in Kansas City to hopefully help boost her platelets. Her platelets and hemoglobin are being severely impacted by her new chemotherapy, which is also causing a lot of nausea and other adverse effects.
Sophia smiles through each obstacle and relies deeply on her faith and positivity.
With that being said, Sophia recently had an unexpected beautiful surprise from the Kansas City Diamonds. What this team did was not only astonishing but also incredibly humbling. Making time for acknowledgments like this is what causes the Kansas City Diamonds to truly shine so bright and stand out as an unbreakable, inspiring, and incredibly rare, one-of-a-kind team.
Sophia was an honoree at the Kansas City Diamonds game on July 3. Luckily, Sophia was released from the hospital after an unexpected admission just in time for the game. Sophia was able to meet the amazing Kansas City Diamonds team, coaches, staff members, and owners. She enjoyed taking photos with all of them! She gave out her yellow cancer wristband to everyone and had a softball autographed. She was also given a hat and shirt from the Diamonds. She was able to meet a few of the kind New York Rise softball team as well. The Linenberger family felt very blessed and honored to be there.
Sophia wanted to see the KC Diamonds again and had plans to see them on Sunday, July 19 at their home game, right before her chemotherapy week.
Sophia was so excited to go to the game on the 19th. However, she and her family had no idea about the amazing surprise that the Diamonds had planned for her. As soon as they arrived and parked at the game, two wonderful ladies took Sophia down to the field. Once Sophia and her family were on the field, they saw a table come out to Sophia.
The table had a piece of paper on it and a pen. To their surprise, the Kansas City Diamonds announced Sophia and signed her as an official honorary professional softball player for the Kansas City Diamonds. She is a part of the team. The Linenberger family was in shock, exhilarated, and astonished at how phenomenal and compassionate the team, staff, coaches, and owners are!! They could not believe what just happened!
In addition to the signing, Sophia threw out the first pitch of the game with the team gathered around her. Her family mentioned how it was an incredible and emotional moment to actually watch Sophia stand up and throw out the first pitch, which is a moment they never thought they would see again. Sophia was listed on the starting lineup as a professional softball player, with her pitch counting in the game.
What this team has done for Sophia and the Linenberger family is truly remarkable and admirable! Sophia is not only a part of the team; she is a part of the KC Diamonds family!
With all of this being said, Sophia was placed in a suite and had an excellent view of the game while keeping hydrated and out of the heat. While in the suite, Sophia had a special delivery from the opposing team, which was the Florida Vibe Softball Team. They gifted her an autographed Florida Vibe softball. This was so incredibly thoughtful of them. It was a pleasure for Sophia to meet some of the Florida Vibe team members and the warm-hearted Florida Vibe coach!
The night finished with an incredible singer and inspiring testimonies by some of the KC Diamond and Florida Vibe team members. An unforgettable evening with memories that will last forever!
Sophia and her family are tremendously grateful to the Kansas City Diamonds and are honored to be a part of their family. It commonly takes a softball team a great deal of time to establish such an incredible bond and amount of generosity, humility, understanding, and empathy. What makes the Kansas City Diamonds shine so bright is their ability to have these wonderful qualities from the very beginning, making them polished, resilient, and beaming from the start.
Stan, Jenny, Holly, and Sophia Linenberger would like to thank the community and surrounding areas for their continued support and prayers!
#SophiaStrong
Venmo: Jenny-Linenberger