Onyx Benjamin Cabbell

Onyx, or Ony B as he was affectionately known, completed our family on May 8, 2023. He immediately took everyone’s breath away, stunning the nurses with his size. This gentle giant loved nothing more than playing basketball, tackling Daddy and Beau playing football, dancing to music, tickle fights, peek-a-boo, being helpful, giving hugs, cuddling Mommy, and making people smile.

He enjoyed marching to “We Are The Dinosaurs” and “Ants Go Marching”, clapping and shouting hooray in “If You’re Happy and You Know It”, driving to “The Wheels on the Bus”, adding sharks to “Baby Shark”, dumping it with the “20 Trucks: Dump Truck Song”, bouncing his shoulders to “Itsy Bitsy Spider”, and shouting “Fruit Salad (yummy yummy!)”. He also enjoyed the classics, including MC Hammer “U Can’t Touch This” and Earth, Wind, and Fire. He loved all things “Bluey”, learning math on “Numberblocks” (he could count to 20!), learning phonics with “Gracie’s Corner” and “Alphablocks” (favorite letters: O and D), learning all the planets (favorite: Jupiter), and those friendly Monsters of Sesame Street. Ony loved pizza, chicken nuggets, Greek yogurt, bananas, milkies, and cookies! Ony’s favorite colors were orange and blue. He loved jamming on his DJ table, going on family walks, visiting the Living Museum, The Air and Space Museum, and going for rides in the jeep with Beau. Ony B was known in the hospital for roaming the halls in his car or wagon, always socializing with the nurses. He loved the playrooms, rolling cars down the hallway ramps, and making his way outside to enjoy the sunshine. Just like at daycare, everyone was quickly won over by his smile and sweet spirit. Not even a lumbar puncture would slow him down! When Ony couldn’t leave the room, he enjoyed watching the airplanes, buses, garbage trucks, mail trucks, and dump trucks from the window sill. He especially enjoyed getting to ride in the ambulance and getting to see the MediVac helicopter up close.

Ony’s greatest achievement was being the best little brother, son, grandson, and nephew. Ony would protect Beau by jumping into a wrestling match to tag team Daddy when he saw an opening. Ony would love on us with hugs whenever he had the chance. He loved every member of our extended family and enjoyed when they would visit or play peek-a-boo on video chat. Most importantly, Ony taught us to be resilient, keep playing, love loudly and unconditionally, and find the joy every moment.

A celebration of Onyx's life will be held at 1:00 p.m., Saturday, November 29, 2025, at Calvary Baptist Church 8408 Thomas Nelson Highway, Lovingston, VA. Interment to follow at Oak Hill Baptist Church.

We would like to keep Ony B’s memory of kindness, play, and resiliency alive by asking that in lieu of flowers, donations be made in his memory to any of the following organizations:

Edmarc Hospice for Children (to help provide hospice care to other pediatric patients) https://edmarc.org/ways-to-give/

CHKD Child Life (to provide the best play filled enrichment opportunities for patients, earmarked for Hem/Onc and Music Therapy) https://www.chkd.org/support-us/donate/donate-to-child-life/

The Children’s Oncology Group Foundation (to support research into Acute Mylogenous Leukemia, CNS Erythoblastic Sarcoma) https://www.thecogfoundation.org/donate1.html

Tharp Funeral Home & Crematory, Madison Heights, is serving the family.