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For two of his three years of life, Samuel Lindell has been battling cancer.

Samuel was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia on Easter Sunday 2008.

"He's been in treatment since then," his mother, Jodie, of Warren, said. "He's been through a lot."

For 10 months, Samuel had to go to Children's Hospital in Pittsburgh one to two times a week. After that, the schedule was reduced to a visit every month.

He has undergone chemotherapy, spinal taps and a variety of other treatments without complaint.

"He goes with it," Jodie Lindell said. "It's pretty amazing. He takes the treatment; he doesn't question anything."

For each procedure he endures, Samuel receives a bead from the Beads of Courage program. "He got a bead when he lost his hair, any procedure," Jodie said. "Tons of spinal taps."

His collection stands at more than 1,300 beads.

The treatments have demanded more of a price than just Samuel's hair. "He's in a lot of pain in the mornings - real deep," Jodie said. "He'll cry non-stop for three hours."

When he's not being the patient patient, Samuel is a regular kid.

"He's real happy. He is really independent," Jodie said. "Loves his brother, loves to play. Really outgoing."

"He's nice," his big brother Caleb, 7, said. "He likes to play hide and seek with me and my grandma. He likes to play with cars, too."

The family had reason to hope that Samuel was on his way clear of the leukemia.

"It's a 90 to 95 percent cure rate," she said. "He'd been doing really well."

The news they didn't want to hear arrived last week.

"They think he relapsed," Jodie said. "We'll be finding out in about three weeks."

"They found some more cancer," Caleb explained.

If Caleb has his way, "God will just help him so he's done with cancer soon. If a miracle happens, he'll be able to be done with cancer in 2011 in June."

"If he didn't relapse then his treatment will be finished in June 2011," Jodie Lindell said.

Information about Samuel and his ongoing battle can be found at www.caringbridge.org/visit/samuellindell.

When word of a possible relapse reached Caleb's school, Warren Area Elementary Center, the response was immediate, and the outpouring generous.

Students have been dropping change in a bucket as they arrive at school all week.

A student group, Healing Hearts, including Kenny and Justine Lasecki, Nick and Kayla Giambrone, Kennidee Marotta, and Caleb Lindell, is coordinating the donation effort under the direction of school counselor Deb Jannotti.

The members of Healing Hearts decided to continue to get together after graduating from a hospice group. "The best way to cope with difficult situations is to do something for someone else," school counselor Deb Jannotti said.

Healing Hearts keeps the bucket near the school's main entrance every morning for those who want to donate.

Students who put any amount in the bucket may put their name on a heart and staple it the Healing Hearts bulletin board at the school.

"We've collected over $700 in the first three days," Jannotti said. "Kids are giving up their ice cream money. Everyone has been very generous."

At the end of each school day, Caleb gets on the public address system and announces how much was collected, Jannotti said.

"It's amazing the outpouring," she said. "Just phenomenal."

"The money is going directly to the family to defray the travel expenses... and extra things parents need to buy," she said.

"It will mean the world to us," Jodie Lindell said on behalf of herself and her husband, Mike. "You never are ready for something like this. It's hard to pay for everything."

Jannotti said anyone interested in making a contribution may do so at the school.