HEBRON, Ky. — As the first anniversary of her son's death nears, Dedra Klotzbach is on a mission to keep the 5-year-old's memory alive.
"He was just the best kid I could have asked for," she said. "He was my best friend. We just did everything together."
WCPO last spoke with Klotzbach and her husband in April 2023 during the Hudson's Heroes 5K benefit run, which a friend of the family organized in the wake of her son Hudson's death.
A month earlier, Hudson lost his battle with stage 4 Wilms kidney cancer. He had undergone multiple treatments since his diagnosis in December 2021.
"When we found out he relapsed, it absolutely crushed us," Klotzbach said. "He was a week away from remission. He had clear scans for the majority of the time being."
The Klotzbach family was living in Tennessee at the time of Hudson's diagnosis but relocated to the Greater Cincinnati region so he could be treated at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital.
It was there in February 2023 that WCPO captured a special moment between Hudson and some of his favorites in orange and black.
Cincinnati Bengals former linebacker Vinny Rey, safety Brandon Wilson, cornerback Allan George and center Ted Karras got an emergency call on Feb. 3 that Hudson needed a little help from the friends he watched on Sundays.
"You never want to take for granted the impact football has on people's lives. And when the team shared the story with me and the details and wanted a player to come, I jumped all over that," Karras said then. "I just wanted to make sure we could make that wish come true."
For a while after Hudson's death, Klotzbach and her husband struggled to come to terms with the loss.
"When you lose a child, you ask, 'Why? Like, why did this happen?'" she said. "Me and my husband kept asking ourselves, 'What is the purpose of this?' Like there as to be a reason."
It wasn't until this past fall that the answer finally hit.
Hudson's cancer journey amassed a large following on social media, even reaching families across the globe, Klotzbach said. His story touched the lives of thousands, including other families battling childhood cancer and even though who weren't.
So Klotzbach figured what better way to keep her son's legacy alive than for others to be able to carry Hudson with them.
"We wanted to continue to show the kid of person that he was through this brand," she said.
She launched a clothing company named Hudson Apparel. Currently designed for young children, the collection includes pieces like onesies, jackets and headbands.
Klotzbach said she decided on clothes because that was a special bond between her and Hudson.
"One of my favorite things between me and him was just getting excited about picking our clothes out, and what we were gonna wear, the shoes we were gonna wear," she said.
Each order is shipped in two bags. The inner one includes a "Thank You" card with a brief description of Hudson's story. The outer bag is printed with Hudson's image at the center.
"Whenever somebody gets their order, they're gonna see our little boy Hudson," Klotzbach said.
But the company isn't just about fashion. Klotzbach said so many people, friends and strangers alike, donated to and supported her family, so she wanted Hudson Apparel to be a brand that gives back.
"We have already been able to donate over 90 gifts to Children's Hospital for kids that we fighting cancer during Christmas," she said.
Because it's still a new company, Klotzbach is still building up business. The goal is to one day grow sales big enough to be able to take portions of proceeds and give them to other families whose children have cancer.
In a few months, the company will be expanding its clothing options to adult sizes and athletic wear. In the meantime, the first big donation plan is set for March 2.
"We do want to surprise a family with a check or a payment to be able to help them financially," Klotzbach said. "Because the passing of his one year is coming up, so instead of letting that be a sad day for us, we want to do something in his memory."
Klotzbach is running a special right now. You can enter "WCPO" in the discount code box during checkout and receive 30% off.
You can also support the brand on Instagram, on Facebook, and on TikTok.
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