Otis Otto Michael Hill (left) and his grandfather Otto John Rasch together. Photo / Rachell Hill
Otis Otto Michael Hill (left) and his grandfather Otto John Rasch together. Photo / Rachell Hill
Tragedy has struck twice for a Wellington family with two family members dying from cancer within days of each other.
Otis Otto Michael Hill died on Monday last week, two years after he was diagnosed with a rare and aggressive form of cancer. The 17-year-old was farewelled on Monday at Sacred Heart in Petone where friends and family gathered to say their goodbyes.
In the early hours of Tuesday morning, his mother Rachell Hill got the call that her father, Otto John Rasch, after whom her son was named, was dying.
She rushed to Te Omanga Hospice - the same hospice where her son spent the last two weeks of his life - to say goodbye to her father and missed his death by eight minutes. Otto’s son and wife were at his side when he passed, holding his hands. He was 74.
Hill told the Herald she is numb from the grief of losing her son and her father so close together but takes comfort in her belief they are both looking after each other in heaven.
Otis and his grandfather were very close and had spoken to each other about their cancer diagnosis and symptoms when Otto visited his grandson at home after receiving the news his lung cancer had returned and metastasised after being diagnosed five years ago.
“[Otis] was their first grandchild, and my Dad said to my brother he would wait three days after Otis’s service, and then he would go which was exactly what he did. We had our family service for Otis on Saturday and then he passed away yesterday morning,” Hill said.
Otis’s funeral was held at Sacred Heart in Petone on Monday where Hill spoke to the crowd of mourners about her “strong-willed warrior” of a baby, who grew into a warrior of a man.
“After the news, he said, “Mum, I’m not dying, it’s too dramatic,” Rachel told the crowd to laughter.
Rachel said the last two years of her family’s lives had been some of the best - despite their heartbreak - as they lived every single day to the fullest and loved as hard as they could.
“Otis once said to me ‘I’m not afraid of dying, I’m afraid of not living’”
“Otis my darling you have beaten cancer. We love you forever and ever, we will laugh at all your lame jokes forever.
“See you in heaven my baby boy, but until then please come and see your mum in my dreams.”
Otis is survived by his mum Rachel, dad Tyson and younger sister Isa - as well as a wide circle of family members and friends.
Hill said she can’t yet fathom the depth of the loss of her father as she mourns her firstborn son.
“It’s really crazy because I’ve just experienced the worst thing that could ever happen to a parent and it’s like my father thought, ‘okay, well, you’re all devastated now, so let’s just get this over and done with and you can be devastated at the same time’.”
She said her father was a selfless, incredible man who did everything for her family.
“Now he’s gone and he’ll be with Otis and he can look after Otis, which is quite a nice thought that gives me great comfort. He would have wanted it that way.”
Seventeen-year-old Otis Hill was diagnosed with a rare cancer two years ago.
In line with the family’s Samoan culture, Otto has returned to Hill’s brother’s house where he will stay for a week so that family and friends may visit him.
His funeral will be held in the same church as his grandson next week - the same church where he and his wife Emi were married.
Vita Molyneux is a Wellington-based journalist who covers breaking news and stories from the capital. She has been a journalist since 2018 and joined the Herald in 2021.
