TOOMSBORO, Ga. — 11-year-old Mason Ring loves watching cop shows and collecting patches from law enforcement departments.
On Saturday, he got to see what these officers ride in and fly in.
"It's a dream come true for real," said Mason.
For the last six months, Mason has been battling cancer, and he's currently in his second round of chemotherapy.
His father, Shawn Ring, is an officer with the McIntyre Police Department and says this is the happiest he's seen Mason in a long time.
"He's been down all week from his chemo. This is the first time he's really been out, and I can tell now he's just excited," said Shawn.
He says this day couldn't have happened without the help of his fellow officers and a Facebook post.
Officer Glyn Corbitt is a training officer with the Forsyth Police Department.
"My daughter contacted me. She saw Mason's story on Facebook and just said, 'Daddy, can you reach out and see if we can get some patches out?' I reached out to some friends of mine who reached out into some friends of theirs, and it ballooned into this," said Corbitt.
He says in total, there were about eight different agencies from across the state that came out and 11 patrol cars.
"We had almost 200 patches given, several challenge coins, ball caps, t-shirts, stuffed animals, just everything the agencies gave out was appreciated," said Corbitt.
Shawn says these new patches are now part of a hefty collection.
"The last time we counted, I think it was like 2,700. I think we got like two or three hundred today, so I know we're over the 3,000 mark," said Shawn.
To help the Ring family pay for medical treatments, you can find their GoFundMe here.
To send Mason a patch, you can send it to:
Attention: Mason Ring
Shawn and Jessica Ring
203 Main Street, Toomsboro, GA 31090
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