If you think you’ve seen courage, you haven’t met Jaxen Ragland. He’s just nine years old, but his fight is bigger than most adults will ever know. Non-verbal, autistic, and battling neuroblastoma for nearly his entire life, Jaxen’s story isn’t just one of survival—it’s a living testament to hope, grit, and the power of a smile that refuses to be dimmed.

This is not a fairy tale. It’s Alabama in the raw—public housing, broken cars, black mold, and a mother who won’t give up. It’s the kind of story that makes you wonder how much one family can endure, and then marvel at how they keep going anyway.

Jaxen’s journey began in 2018 with a diagnosis that would shatter any parent: neuroblastoma, a rare cancer of the adrenal glands. That same year, his mother, Randa McCall, found herself homeless, trying to keep her four kids safe as their world literally crumbled around them. Black mold crept up the walls. Food stamps barely stretched. Medicaid covered the hospital visits, but not the endless list of expenses that come with childhood cancer—rides to treatment, medicine, wipes, and the constant scramble for enough change to get to Children’s of Alabama.

For Randa, the choices were brutal: work and pay for daycare, or stay home and care for her kids herself? With two sons on the autism spectrum—Jaxen, non-verbal and severely affected, and Josiah, high-functioning—the answer was clear. She put her career on hold and became a full-time warrior for her family.

But the fight never stops. Jaxen’s cancer went into remission in 2021, and for a moment, hope bloomed. His eyes sparkled, his smile grew wider, and the family dared to dream of normalcy. Then, in 2023, the nightmare returned. The cancer was back—worse than before. Tumors pressed on his spinal cord and rib cage. Lesions appeared in his eyes and brain. The prognosis was grim, but Jaxen didn’t flinch. Instead, he smiled.

That smile isn’t just for show. It’s the glue holding his family together, the beacon that keeps Randa moving forward when everything seems impossible. “Jaxen is very aware of what goes on around him,” Randa says. “When he feels good, he loves music and finger painting and the Mickey Mouse Club. Even when we’re facing tough times, watching him smile brings us joy.”

But joy comes at a price. The family’s car is broken down, too expensive to fix. Randa relies on Lyft or Uber to get Jaxen to his appointments—if she can scrape together enough money. When a tree crashed into their power line and destroyed the air conditioning, it set her back $600, money she didn’t have. Every day brings a new crisis, but Randa refuses to surrender.

“It’s a daily fight,” she says, her voice full of pride. “You wake up each day to a new issue. You just do your best to work through it all.”

Recently, things got worse before they got better. Doctors admitted Jaxen for antibody therapy and radiation, keeping him in the hospital for up to ten days at a time, then sending him home for a week before the cycle began again. The treatments are harsh, but they’re working: Jaxen is walking again, his smile is brighter, and for the first time in months, hope feels real.

Through it all, Jaxen remains a miracle. “He really shouldn’t be here,” Randa says. “He really is a miracle.” The doctors agree—his resilience defies medical logic. His laughter, when it comes, is loud, funny, and beautiful. It’s a sound that fills their small apartment in Pinson, Alabama, and reminds the family that miracles don’t always look like what you expect.

Jaxen doesn’t dwell on what he’s lost. He’s thankful for what he has. His mother, siblings, and the simple joys of music and Mickey Mouse. He doesn’t ask for pity. He asks for a chance to live, to smile, to fight another day.

As for Randa, she’s learned to find strength in the struggle. She’s proud of her family, proud of her refusal to quit, and proud of the hope that her son brings to everyone around him. “When Jaxen laughs his laugh, it’s loud and funny and beautiful,” she says, her smile echoing his.

This is the story Alabama needs to hear. It’s not about charity—it’s about respect. It’s about seeing the families who fight in silence, who battle odds that would break most people, and who do it all with a smile that lights up the darkness.

Jaxen Ragland is more than a survivor. He’s a symbol of hope, a reminder that even in the toughest times, joy can break through. His journey is far from over, and the challenges keep coming. But as long as he keeps smiling, his family—and everyone who hears his story—will keep believing.

If you want to follow Jaxen’s battle, check out his story on Facebook. Share it. Support it. Let the world know that miracles are real, and sometimes, they come with a smile.

Because in the end, hope is what keeps us all alive. And Jaxen Ragland is living proof.