Terminally-Ill Delaware County Boy Receives A Hero's Welcome Home
SPRINGFIELD, Pa. (CBS) -- A terminally-ill boy from Delaware County received a hero's police escort welcome home Tuesday afternoon from a trip with his family in Walt Disney World.
Numerous Delaware County police agencies participated in a police escort together and honored three-year-old Brayden Chandler, of Springfield Township.
There was a hint of smile from Brayden just before his parents brought him inside their home for the evening.
For the most part, understandably, the three-year-old appeared a bit overwhelmed by all the attention.
He received a massive police escort home. Bystanders were eager to show their love support and well wishes.
Brayden's family appreciated every bit of it.
"I can't really put it into words, just everybody being there for us," Brayden's father Jason Chandler said.
"It's amazing how the community came together. It shows their support for Brayden," Brayden's mother Jackie Chandler said.
Brayden was coming home from a week-long trip to Walt Disney World and Sea World thanks to the Make-A-Wish foundation.
Brayden was diagnosed with bilateral Wilms Tumor in January of 2013. After a 13 month battle, doctors advised Brayden's parents that the cancer has relapsed and there is no further course of treatment to pursue.
"He was actually originally scheduled to go down to Orlando in April and when we got news about Brayden we all decided to make it happen. Make-A-Wish made it happen and the next thing you know we were all on a plane to Florida," Brayden's aunt Dana Marinelli said.
The escort from the airport drew more than 50 police officers from around the region.
At one point, Brayden's limo drove under a giant American flag that stretched across Route 420.
Many of the police officers who helped give Brayden a hero's escort home did so on their own time. They volunteered for no pay.