With Limited Time Left, Ashland Teen Looks to Cross Items Off Bucket List

A Massachusetts teenager battling a rare form of cancer is determined to make his time left matter.

Jake Silver, an 18-year-old from Ashland, put together a bucket list, and the community is rallying around him to make sure he accomplishes every wish.

Silver was diagnosed with an aggressive form of bone cancer called osteosarcoma three years ago. After 35 rounds of chemotherapy and 15 surgeries, he was getting ready for another one last week when he received devastating news.

"They said, 'We can't do the surgery. You have, like, 20 plus tumors on your lung,'" Silver said. "They said I have three to six months left."

Some would see it as the end, but Silver sees it as an opportunity.

"When I found I didn't have a lot of time left, I was like, 'Alright, Yellowstone.'"

The cross-country road trip is just part of Silver's bucket list. It is not long, but it includes things like having his first kiss and attending as many sports games as possible.

His mom, Melissa Duca, posted the list online in the Facebook group called "Team Jake," and she could not believe the response she received from the community.

"The amount of people that have been reaching out to me, people we don't know, it's incredible," Duca said. "We're just trying to get it all done now so we have the memories."

Silver has already accomplished some of his items. He went to the Patriots game last Sunday and has plans to sit courtside at the Celtics game next week. He recently helped his little sister, Halle, pick out her prom dress.

"Once I realized he wasn't going to make it to my wedding, I was like, 'Let's get my prom dress,'" his sister said.

Next on the list is going to the Super Bowl, and maybe even meeting Tom Brady.

He also wants to meet The Rock and see the new Lion King movie before it is released because he does not think he will make it until the summer.

He cannot fly due to the conditions of his lungs, but he is confident he will cross off every item on the list. The community is already helping him. They are selling orange bows for $20 a piece to help raise money for him to make the trips. They can be seen all over Ashland.

"Any slight chance of doing something, I'm going to take it," Silver said. "And I just want to say thank you."

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