Local kid, cancer patient claims big bear on North Carolina hunt

The team of hunters walked through the thick brush of the North Carolina forest, following the lead of a pack of dogs. They’d been at it for over an hour and a half, the canines, but by the sounds of their barks reverberating through the woods, their target was cornered and they were getting close.

“It was one of the most exciting hunts I’d ever been on. I didn’t know what to expect, but we had a great team,” said Laurens County native Justin Savage. “We were walking through the thick woods and suddenly there was a bear hanging from a limb in a tree.”

The hunting party quickly sprang into action, preparing a special apparatus for the primary shooter, Savage’s daughter, Emmi Ruth Savage, to safely take a shot at the animal, while a secondary shooter took aim as a precaution. Within a few moments two shots rang out, the first from Emmi’s rifle and the second from the spotter’s gun and the bear lay dead on the forest floor. Upon inspection, only the first shot was needed.

“She put a perfect heart shot on the bear,” Savage said of his daughter’s marksmanship. 

At only 8 years old Emmi is an accomplished hunter, and fisher, too. Her trophies range from beautiful trout to massive wild hogs. The black bear, weighing in at about 200 pounds, is just the latest. But tracking and harvesting wild game seems an easy task compared to a challenge she faces every day – childhood cancer.

At age 3, Emmi was diagnosed with neuroblastoma, a type of cancer that presents as a tumor in infants and children. Emmi’s tumor appeared in her stomach and grew as large as a cantaloupe her father said. 

“If you met her you wouldn’t know it,” Savage said of her resilience. “She goes through a lot, but she doesn’t let it slow her down.” 

She has gone through six rounds of chemotherapy. On the positive side, the cancerous cells of the tumor turn benign; however, the growth cannot be surgically removed and affects her liver. Emmi has had stints placed and requires medical procedures every three months to make sure her other organs remain healthy. 

Doctors are currently using cryotherapy to shrink to tumor. 

Emmi’s love of hunting and the great outdoors began by watching her family prepare for hunts. 

“I’ve always hunted and her brother hunts,” Savage said. “It has always interested her and as she got older she started going out with us.” 

She is small in stature, so she uses special equipment to hold, stabilize and sight her rifle. 

Emmi’s hunting endeavors have been expanded through organizations like Hunting for the Cure, Kourageous Outdoor Kids and the Outdoor Dream Foundation. Each group, which operates locally or has Georgia chapters, works to support families with children facing chronic or terminal medical conditions by building support communities and coordinating hunting and fishing trips and other outdoor activities for the patients. The North Carolina bear hunt was organized by an Outdoor Dream Foundation volunteer guide named Tony, who met Emmi during a North Georgia trout fishing excursion.

“I love what these groups do for the kids,” Savage said. “You get to see your kid be a kid. They’re not in the hospital being poked and prodded on. You get to meet other families going through the same thing and you build a support system.” 

Currently, Emmi is mid-treatment and is waiting for an MRI to check the cryotherapy’s effectiveness. Early CT scans are promising. Her next hunting trip is set for early May, with a voyage to Wyoming for a turkey hunt. 

In the meantime, though, with Georgia’s turkey season in full swing, she can look forward to some local outings with her dad and brother.