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Boy, 3, with brain cancer gets wish to become firefighter for day

SEMINOLE COUNTY, Fla. — Every child dreams of being a firefighter or police officer when they grow up and a 3-year-old boy got his wish.

Aiden Rawls became an honorary firefighter Thursday at the Lake Mary Fire Department.

Rawls has brain cancer and is part of program that grants wishes for children with cancer.

“(He’s) outgoing. He loves to make people laugh. He’s just an awesome kid. He surprises me every day,” said Clayton Rawls, Aiden’s father.

Rawls wore a firefighter helmet as he worked the fire hose, went up in the ladder truck and sat in the firetruck.

“They love it. They have a chance to be a firefighter for the day. They get to work with us. They sit down and eat lunch with us and they get to go for a ride on the firetruck,” Lt. Bruce Williams, with Station 37, told Channel 9’s Steve Barrett.

Williams said he came up with the idea two years ago to help put a smile on the faces of children who have cancer and have to deal with chemotherapy and radiation.

“It’s something that we will never forget, and we can look back at it and show him pictures and videos and it’s something that he will always remember,” Rawls said.