HANOVER COUNTY, Va. -- The Hanover Fire Department added one more member to its ranks in a special ceremony on Monday morning - a seven-year-old boy who waited a little longer for his dream to become a reality.
For Javi Guzman, Monday morning's ceremony was a dream come true as friends, family and classmates looked on to watch the boy take the oath to become Hanover's newest firefighter.
The Make-A-Wish Foundation of Greater Virginia made the special moment possible after Javi was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma over two years ago.
His parents said that Javi has been fascinated with firefighters ever since he was little and would go running whenever he heard a siren, no matter what he was doing.
"Sometime, he was in the bathroom and got out of the bath, went directly for the window, 'oh my God! Look at the firefighter. I want to be a firefighter one day.' I said, 'Well, you got to work hard, one day you will.' Yeah, I'm very proud of him," Martin Guzman, Javi's father, said.
It was also a special moment for the fire department as Monday was their first time being able to take part in Make-A-Wish.
"He is an inspiration for us, for the struggles and the challenges he's overcome. And so, we're excited to share our profession with him, share our passion to support the community," Chief Jethro Piland, III with Hanover Fire & EMS said.
Following the swearing-in ceremony, Javi was off to Station 10 for a day of drills, such as beating the chief in a race putting on the gear and completing an obstacle course.
With the whole department, family and many others behind Javi, his mom said the journey is made much easier.
"When you have that, you feel like you can get through some really tough times."
