Young man with rare brain cancer fulfills dying wish to be baptized in the Gulf

PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. (WTSP) - A Florida community rallied around an 18-year-old man with a rare brain cancer whose dying wish was to be baptized in the Gulf of Mexico.

Caden Speck, 18, is being treated in Atlanta for what his family says is one of the rarest forms of brain cancer in the world. He was diagnosed in 2022 with diffuse leptomeningeneal glioneuronal tumors with anaplastic features, which makes the cancer more aggressive.

“He’s always there for anyone who needs it,” said Speck’s girlfriend, Jasmine Hancock. “He’s always laughing.”

Speck recently traveled to Reddington Beach, Florida, hoping to find some normalcy by spending time with his girlfriend. Loved ones say the trip offered a brief escape from months of grueling treatments.

“You want to just cry at everything and the hand that he’s been dealt because he’s 18 and he doesn’t deserve this,” said Kristin Hancock, Speck’s unofficial aunt.

While in Florida, Speck wanted to get baptized in the Gulf. Kristin Hancock says he made that request clear, even before his visit, so using Facebook, she set about finding a pastor who would baptize the 18-year-old on a week’s notice. She was met with an overwhelming response.

“Boat captains offering tours of the islands while he’s here. The outpouring was amazing,” she said.

Despite facing severe stomach complications that left him barely able to walk, Speck insisted on moving forward with his baptism Saturday.

“We can reschedule. If you’re not feeling well, we can go to the emergency room,” Kristin Hancock told him. “He said, ‘No, I’m going. I have a mission.’”

Pastor Grayson Wells baptized Speck on the beach with water from the Gulf, describing the young man’s determination as remarkable.

“He’s very courageous,” Wells said. “That’s the light of Christ shining through him for everybody to see. That’s how we need to be. We’re all called to be bold for one another, no matter what our circumstances are.”

Speck stopped all treatments as of Oct. 28. He may be moving into hospice care over the next few months. His family and loved ones say they are not asking for fundraisers or donations but instead prayers, so Speck knows how loved he really is through this horrific journey.

Jasmine Hancock says the support he has received while visiting Florida has touched him deeply.

“He’s always told me ever since we got here to Florida. He said he’s never had people care about him and be there for him as much as we have,” she said.

Speck’s loved ones say he will probably be in Florida until Thanksgiving then eventually return home to Georgia. He wants to follow-up on his baptism and fully immerse in the Gulf when he’s feeling stronger.