SANDY — The family of a boy who died suddenly and tragically tried to put their sadness aside for a special celebration Sunday.

A birthday party for Leonardo Sanchez went on just the way it should, even without the guest of honor.

Ten days earlier, 1-year-old Leo was at a day-care center in West Jordan. Police said he suffocated after being trapped under a bean bag a worker was sitting on. Police are still investigating the circumstances surrounding the death.

However, Leo's parents, Dan and Danielle Sanchez, didn't want anything to get in the way of his birthday celebration. Not even his funeral.

"The funeral kind of landed on his birthday and I said, 'You know what? Let's still do a birthday party because that's what we should have been planning,'" Danielle said.

"It was that birthday we really wanted to have," she said. "His spirit is here, definitely."

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Leonardo "Baby Leo" Sanchez would have turned 2 in a few days. "I'm supposed to be planning his birthday party for next week and now I'm planning his funeral," his mother, Danielle Sanchez, said in tears Friday.

Leonardo would have turned 2 years old. His brother, Antonio, is still trying to understand.

"I really, really miss him. Everybody does, and it's just really sad. I just feel like he's going to come back to life, but he isn't," he said.

Despite the pain, paying it forward was the purpose of the party.

"I just thought, you know, let's get those birthday presents and donate them back to the hospital," Danielle said.

So, all the gifts will go to Primary Children's Hospital, because Danielle couldn't think of any better way to celebrate her son's life than sharing his spirit with others.

"We want to just give our thanks back and spread Leo's love," she explained.

Leo's parents are also starting a non-profit for families who lose children tragically.

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