By O’Ryan Johnson
The Boston Herald
BURLINGTON, Mass. — A brave 5-year-old boy who wears a firefighter costume to chemotherapy to make him feel stronger got an upgrade yesterday when big-hearted members of the Burlington Fire Department made him an honorary firefighter — giving him a real, but pint-sized, coat, hat and boots and a place of honor in the firetruck leading the town’s Fourth of July parade.
Dougie Davis couldn’t wait to shed the red plastic coat his mom bought him at the hospital gift shop and don the real turnout gear firefighters had made for him, complete with his name sown onto the back.
“He’s never going to take it off,” said Dougie’s mom, Angela Davis, 27, who is from Burlington but lives in Billerica.
Dougie has an inoperable brain tumor and is receiving chemotherapy at Massachusetts General Hospital. He wants to be a firefighter one day, and he’s a regular visitor to the firehouse. The Herald first reported the firefighters’ surprise plans for Dougie’s special day earlier this week.
Firefighter Gerry Hanafin read Dougie the oath of office and showed him to his locker in the firehouse.
“The coolest part of the swearing-in ceremony is when we opened the door and he saw his coat and he ripped that other coat off,” Hanafin said. “That was pretty impressive. He’s a very happy kid. We’re happy to be able to help him.”
Dougie spent much of his time at the firehouse yesterday crawling over the fire apparatus, opening the outer cargo doors of the ladder truck, flipping switches in the cab and putting on emergency radio headphones. Then he climbed into the truck to lead the parade.
“Seeing the look on his face. He’s in complete shock. He loves it,” said his father, Rich Davis. “It’s a full uniform. Sometimes we have to fight with him to take his boots off when he goes to bed.”
The firefighters have rallied to Dougie’s side, selling grey “Team Dougie” bracelets, and everyone chipped in when firefighter Paul Kadilak wanted to do something special for the little boy. Kadilak found a company that could make smaller-sized firefighter gear and the department donated a full-sized helmet.
“I asked my chief if we could give him something real firefighters would use, not the plastic kind,” Kadilak said. “He’s got a new helmet with a shield on it. It’s pretty cool.”
Burlington fire Chief Steve Yetman said he’s proud of how the department pulled together for Dougie.
“It’s all about Dougie. He’s a little kid that loves the fire department,” he said. “And if we can make the day better for him, that’s what we’re going to do.”
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