Isaiah Hesed "Ocho" Capps

2012 - 2025

This is not an obituary.
It's the story of the most spirited little warrior and his steadfast and immoveable God - a story that begins and ends with a little blue boy who chose joy, love, laughter, gratitude and forgiveness despite absolutely unimaginable circumstances and the God who held him through it all.
From the moment we first spotted the boy with the blue lips in a healing home in China 10 years ago, we knew he was extraordinary.
Dang Chen Wen was his Chinese name. DANG!, as we so often called him - the most fitting name for a walking exclamation mark of a child - was the baby home's official greeter. Though his lips and fingertips were tinged blue and starved of oxygen, there was still more than enough in those tiny lungs to belt out every song and welcome every visitor with his trademark love.
He was joy.
He was dying.
He was full of life.
Even with a single-ventricle heart and an open wound on his face from an unrepaired cleft lip and palate, he was completely captivating - a living, breathing reminder that beauty and brokenness can coexist in the same small body.
In a story only God could write, that blue and beautiful boy became our son a couple of years later.
After enduring a failing heart, failing systems, failing families, severe neglect, and multiple medical crises, this charismatic little character stepped into our home and became our Isaiah - our "Ocho," our perfect number eight.
Isaiah Hesed Capps - "God is salvation," and "God is steadfast love."
And as only Isaiah could, he embraced his new name, his new family, and his new life with pure eagerness and delight. He made up for years of illness, abandonment, and loss with bike rides, soccer games, playdates, swimming, school, and endless family time.
He made up for lost time with enthusiasm - and with volume. And he never, ever stopped saying thank you for it all.
This boy who had been abandoned not once but twice, who had been wronged by the world - he was healing. Thriving. Laughing. Living a life that overflowed with grace, gratitude, and absolute joy.
He had every reason to be angry at the world, and yet he chose wonder instead. He never passed up an opportunity to go places or to be with the people he loved - and he loved everyone.
He always wore a smile and hardly ever wore a shirt.
He was fun.
He was loud.
He was laughter.
He was kind.
He was an enthusiastic "YES!" to anything and everything.
He loved life, his friends, his family, and everything under the sun. He was all in, all the time - our frat boy trapped in a little boy's body.
The boy whose chest scars, facial scars, and lingering speech impediment told the story of a life well fought-for should have been insecure. Tentative. Reluctant. Resentful.
And yet Isaiah lived confidently in the land of total, absolute, awe-inspiring forgiveness and joy, with his palms wide open to every single experience.
With his medical conditions, our brave boy lived too often with one foot in the grave. But he never let that stop him from planting the other foot fully and completely in life. He lived a "yes" and "thank you" out-loud life - proclaiming the power of joy and gratitude for all to hear.
After nearly eight years of having the privilege of loving our "Ocho," our boy said goodbye much the same way he had greeted us all those years ago - as a blue little boy choosing joy, love, laughter, gratitude, and forgiveness despite unimaginable circumstances.
And on September 28, 2025, after the most courageous fight, our boy went Home.
While our hearts are broken, his is healed and whole. And now, today, he's wrapped in the arms of the steadfast God who, his whole life long, never once let him go - not as a fragile baby boy in a crib in China, not in a hospital ICU, not in our living room.
We know that the same God who whispered again and again, "I have not forgotten you," walks with our boy now and forever. And we imagine our Isaiah, with all the volume he has, saying "YES!" and "Thank you!" to the God who has been there all along.
Isaiah will rest at Arlington National Cemetery among heroes and warriors - a place befitting a boy who fought every battle with courage, joy, and grace.
We will intentionally celebrate this boy we love during Thanksgiving week, a week of gratitude - because this boy who embraced every yes life had to offer never stopped thanking God and thanking us for the life he had been given. And we will never stop giving thanks for the opportunity God gave us to say "yes" to our Isaiah.
Thank you for helping us honor and remember the boy who teaches us all that gratitude and joy are a choice, and we can always proclaim "YES!" to both.
We would love for you to join us for Isaiah's last big party. The frat boy in a 13-year-old's body would love nothing more than a crowd of people to love and laugh with on his big day.
Ocho's Big Party
St. John Paul Soccer Fields
2922 Camp Easter Rd, Southern Pines, NC 28387
November 25, 2025
1:00 - 3:30 p.m.
This event is open to anyone and everyone who wants to honor Isaiah. If you plan to attend, please complete this RSVP form so we can plan accordingly by visiting www.oneofh1s.com/isaiah-HhDvr
Our little soccer star would love nothing more at his final farewell than a loud crowd and a sea of jerseys. If you would like to purchase an Ocho jersey to wear to the celebration, please order yours at no later than 24 OCT at www.oneofh1s.com/isaiah-HhDvr