Katana was a creative spirit, sharing stories and developing entire movies in her head with her action figures at home. Her imagination ran wild and her heart was big. She wasn’t shy handing out hugs to her loved ones either. Her adventurous spirit kept her parents, Ashlee and Trap, on their toes, but they loved her like crazy.

Her childhood cancer story is unique too, but heartbreaking.

One day, Katana started acting a little sick. Upset stomach, throwing up, the normal sick kid things. Her parents put her in bed and let her rest. She still wanted to stay in bed the next day, but nothing alarming stood out to her parents that indicated they might need to go to the hospital.

When they went to check on her again though, she was unresponsive. After rushing to the hospital, doctors couldn’t revive her. It was only later that the doctors told Ashlee and Trap that Katana, their three-year-old, had acute leukemia and that had caused her to pass away.

Afterwards, they had to think about all the questions that go through parents heads when their child is diagnosed. They want to use their experience to try and share the importance of helping families going through this. Trap’s advice to other parents is to make sure you spend time with your kids. “You could be spending a time building a future that won’t be there, and that’s the hardest part for me,” said Trap.

As their family, including Katana’s older siblings Carmella and Carmine, continue, they will carry Katana’s spirit and story forward while raising awareness of this disease and trying to help other parents make sense of the grief that follows an experience like this.

The memories with Katana will always be with them though, including one that plays over and over in Trap’s head. It’s when their family went to the Seven Magic Mountains in Vegas, a collection of colored rocks stacked atop one another in the desert. It was one of Katana’s favorite places. As they continue finding their way through life, they find the strength to carry on and hope to be a rock for others facing such a traumatic experience.

Information provided by Trap G., Katana’s dad

Updated August 2026