WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — A 5-year-old Florida boy diagnosed with an aggressive form of brain cancer got his wish of being a marine unit officer for the day thanks to the efforts of organizations and south Florida law enforcement agencies.
According to Chasin a Dream Foundation, who assists Giovanni Bacon's family financially, he has been battling cancer for the last three years.
CBS12 spoke to his mother, Veronica Koors, who said that Giovanni’s prognosis is now bleak.
“I just found out that the tumors in his brain have multiplied and spread to his spine,” Koors said to CBS12. “Things are going downhill, so as his mother, I decided to stop the treatment on Oct. 1 because things haven’t gotten better at all. If anything, they’ve gotten worse."
Doctors have given Giovanni weeks, possibly months to live.
That’s why Chasin a Dream Foundation and Fortified Investigation Services, LLC joined forces with the community and other law enforcement agencies to make sure Giovanni’s final days are full of happy memories and getting the opportunity to fulfill his dream.
On Oct. 9 Giovanni headed down the dock with the Air and Marine Operations West Palm Beach Marine unit joined the U.S. Coast Guard to get ready for a “joint patrol,” while local Palm Beach County-based local, state and federal law enforcement agencies cheered him on.
Giovanni got to sit in the driver’s seat of the U.S. Coast Guard boat while several police boats flanked each side with lights and sirens and helicopters flew above. As can be seen in videos posted to the Chasin a Dream Foundation’s Facebook page by Founder and Managing Director Lori Griffith.
“The extraordinary courage and strength displayed by this boy facing brain cancer is something for us all to admire,” said Martin Wade, Director of the Miami Air and Marine Branch. “The spirit of service and the outpouring of support is a testament to the teams of teams that work together safeguarding the homeland every day.”
The Boyton Peach Police Department was among the other law enforcement agencies also a part of helping Giovanni become a marine officer for the day.
“It was truly our honor to be part of it,” the police department said in a Facebook post.
Koors told CBS12 that police officers who come to visit Giovanni in the hospital always bring a smile to his face and that "it meant the world to him to put on a badge of his own."
If you want to help Giovanni's family with medical bills, you can donate here.
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