A memorial blood and bone marrow drive will be held for Lucas "Bear" Cervone. View Full Caption Facebook/Lucas Bear Heroes

CHICAGO — The family of Lucas "Bear" Cervone," a 5-year-old who lost his battle with cancer last year, will host a memorial blood drive in his honor.

Lucas' parents, Anthony and Rina Cervone, hope the May 6 blood drive can help those in need and raise awareness of the need for Latino blood and bone marrow donors. The event will take place the day before Lucas would have turned 7 years old.

Lucas' family has spent years encouraging Chicago's Latino community to sign up for blood and bone marrow donations. They learned of the need for those donors while struggling to find a bone marrow match for Lucas, who was Latino and white. He needed monthly blood transfusions and a bone marrow transplant while battling cancer, and they were told they were more likely to find a match in a Latino donor.

It took months for the family to find a donor who would match with Lucas, though a match was eventually found in Germany.

The donation appeared to help Lucas recover, and he was able to return home.

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But a tumor grew close to Lucas' heart, and the Belmont Cragin boy died May 1, just a few days shy of his 6th birthday. His family's attempt to gather 500 birthday cards for Lucas gained international attention, and they eventually received more than 150,000.

The blood drive is 10 a.m.-4 p.m. May 6 at Jorge Prieto Math and Science Academy, 2231 N. Central Ave. It's recommended attendees make appointments by emailing lucasbearheroes@gmail.com.

Those who wish to donate should prepare by eating well, drinking water and bringing an ID.

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