A kindergartener burst onto the police scene last week and made his first two arrests stopping the ‘bad guys’ as an officer of the Orlando Police Department.
Stone Hicks, 4, is battling end-stage kidney disease, and it was his dream to become a police officer.
The Orlando Police and the Make-a-Wish Foundation extended a supremely sweet gesture to Stone’s family and allowed the young boy to suit up and become a cop for a day.
The dream came true for the ‘Paw Patrol’ fan on April 24, with Stone, donning his pristine new uniform, being sworn in as cop by the police chief in a auditorium full of cheering fans.
Stone is walked through a ceremony in his honor after apprehending a dognapper and a soccer jersey thief
Stone is sworn in as a Orlando cop by the police chief in an auditorium filled with cheering supporters
Stone poses with members of the Orlando Magic hype team, who showed up to cheer him on
Stone rides off in his police car to catch ‘bad guys’, one of which ‘stole’ a puppy
Stone excitedly arrests a ‘suspect’ with the help of an adult
Stone officially slaps handcuffs on the ‘thief’ who made off with a stolen jersey
Orlando Police posted a picture of ‘Officer Stone’ in his cop car posing with the other officers with the following message: ‘Stone, thank YOU for your courage, not only in helping us today solve crime, but also being an inspiration to the entire community.’
The police then orchestrated two urgent calls for Stone to deal with.
First, Stone valiantly took back a puppy from a ‘bad guy’ and returned it to the rightful owner. He caught up to the ‘thief’ in his trusty police car, then pursued him on foot before placing him under arrest and getting him in the vehicle.
The woman who owned the puppy was seen hugging Stone and thanking him for ‘saving’ her puppy.
Next, the young officer, fresh off the high of bringing his first perp to justice, sprung into action again to arrest someone else for ‘stealing’ the retired jersey of a former Orlando City Soccer star.
Stone again tracked down the ‘suspect’ over at the soccer stadium and handcuffed him with help from an adult.
Stone’s family were among the overjoyed onlookers, happy to see their boy live out his dream.
For his exemplary yet brief service, Stone is awarded a plaque in his honor and a goodie bag
Stone rides around in his Orlando Police-styled cop car, complete with name written on the dash
Stone (pictured) is battling end-stage kidney disease, and Make-A-Wish partnered with the Orland Police to give him a once-in-a-lifetime experience as a on-duty cop
Stone’s dream has been to become a cop, and thanks to the Make-A-Wish Foundation and the Orlando Police, his dream came true
‘Him being in the police cars, rushing to the bad guys and arresting them, it was a full-on experience for him, one I’m sure he won’t forget,’ said Craig Hicks, the Stone’s father.
And ‘Officer Stone’ wasn’t shy about his impressive record as a Orlando cop.
‘I was awesome,’ he said.
Stone’s ‘awesome’ service was recognized in a processional complete with pro basketball team Orlando Magic’s hype band and cheerleaders, a proclamation from the Orlando mayor, an award plaque from the police department, a goodie bag teeming with fun items and plenty of confetti.
After hanging up his hat and uniform, Stone continued his day with more activities and even got to meet some characters from his favorite show ‘Paw Patrol.’
Stone marches through a mass of adoring onlookers and a shower of confetti after making his two ‘arrests’
Stone holds the handcuffs he used to arrest two suspects and poses for a picture with Orlando Police
Stone meets characters from the TV show ‘Paw Patrol,’ which was the thing that inspired him to want to be a police officer
‘I was awesome,’ Stone said, regarding his service as a cop
Stone cheers as he ushers one of his handcuffed ‘suspects’ into custody
‘Officer Stone’ in his plain clothes before being presented with his shiny new uniform and cop car
Stone (pictured in his police car) on stage with the police and the Orlando Magic hype team
Anne Cuba, the president and CEO at Make-A-Wish Central and Northern Florida told a local outlet why gestures like this for children diagnosed with serious illnesses are important.
‘[Stone’s] been battling end-stage kidney disease. Our kids go through so much when they battle their critical illness and we are really here to celebrate him and give him that hope and strength and joy,’ Cuba said.
She continued: ‘What’s special is the wishes that we grant is it’s not just for the child, it’s really for the entire family because it’s not only the child battling the critical illness, it’s the entire family that has grown into this terrible situation.’
