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Mother finds sweet note from son who lost battle with brain infection

PIKE COUNTY, Ga. — A mother is sharing the note she found from her son after he lost his fight against a rare brain infection.

She posted the note on the Facebook page for 6-year-old Leland Shoemake, Prayers for Leland.

His mother says she found the note thanking her and his father on their living room table when she came home to pick out his burial clothes.

"We have no idea when he wrote it but you can tell he was always a special child," Amber Shoemake wrote in the post.

It is unclear how the Pike County boy came in contact with the amoeba, but the CDC says Balamuthia mandrillaris enters the body when soil containing it comes in contact with skin wounds. or when dust containing it is breathed in or gets in the mouth.

"The one thing (Leland) loved most was playing in the dirt. I never imagined that would be the thing that would take him from me," Shoemake wrote in her post.

Leland had been in critical condition at Children's Healthcare of Atlanta at Egleston before he died on Friday.

"His smile could light up a city. He was the smartest, most caring, loving little boy there ever was. He was taken from us too soon. He could have done great things in this world," Shoemake wrote.

She ended the heartbreaking post with, "We will love you forever Leland. Sleep tight and don't let the bed bugs bite!"

His parents had started a GoFundMe page to raise money for hospital bills.

This is Amber. This will be my only post on here for awhile. I was over protective of Leland and tried my best to keep...

Posted by Prayers for Leland on Monday, September 28, 2015

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