7-year-old Palatine boy serves as officer for the day

While he was fighting an infection from acute lymphoblastic leukemia earlier this year, 7-year-old George Marijan told his mother he wanted to be a police officer who is "tough and strong and can save the world."

"He wanted to be Superman for a day," his mother Gordy Stevic said.

The Palatine boy recently had that dream fulfilled through the Make-A-Wish foundation and with the help of the Buffalo Grove police.

"It was a great day," Marijan said. "I liked everything they did for me that day." More than 50 volunteers from the police and fire departments set up Marijan's ideal crime-fighting day for him last month. Stevic said Marijan laid out the details of what he wanted to do as an officer for the foundation.

"I was speechless at what they did. For George, it's still like a dream," she said. He was given two custom-made police uniforms - one was a set of fatigues - and was able to ride in police cars, learn how to fire a gun and deal with K-9 units.

He also apprehended a thief who stole a diamond from Burdeen's Jewelry and dealt with a hostage situation in events staged by police.

"I like what (officers) do," Marijan said. "It's saving the world from danger."

Stevic said the prospect of being a police officer helped her son keep going while he was in the hospital.

"When he made a wish, he was very, very sick," she said. "Things were not going well. It gave him something extra to look forward to."

She said volunteers from Make-A-Wish would call every week to give Marijan little details on what he could expect.

"It really helped him heal," she said.

The experience also helped him grow up; Stevic said by the end of the day, he went from being called Georgie to George.

Stevic said the fire department also wants Marijan to come by one day to see what firefighters do. And members of the police department have promised to keep in touch, so it's just more reason for her son to keep fighting his disease.

For now, the 7-year-old is still facing years of chemotherapy but Stevic said the hope is that he is past the most grueling part of the disease.

"It's very important to maintain a positive environment. I remind him what he was able to do: 'You walked around, you jumped, you caught the bad guys,'" Stevic said. "It brings back the good memories, and he's ready to fight."