Amazon Makes Boy’s Dream Come True With Visit To Phoenix Distribution Center

Image courtesy of USA Today

Though we may be used to the idea of summoning any product you want from anywhere around the world with the click of a button, the process that goes into making such a feat possible is a lot more complicated. And for an eight-year-old boy who spent a lot of time, while fighting cancer, thinking about how Amazon makes it all work, seeing that system up close and personal on a recent trip was a dream come true.

A Phoenix boy who was diagnosed with kidney cancer at age 6 says he loves taking things apart and building something new, USA Today reports.

“I like to be science-y. I like the process of making,” he said.

While he was going through cancer treatment, he was stuck at home or in the hospital, his only source of excitement online shopping: he’d order robots and fountain pens to take apart, and at the same time, muse about what happened between the moment he clicked “buy” and the package’s arrival at his door.

His need to order things was getting “out of control,” his mom says, so she decided to contact Amazon, his favorite retailer.

On the day after his 8th birthday — now recovering and healthy enough to do things like go outside — he went on a trip to one of four Amazon fulfillment centers in Phoenix, accompanied by his family and some of the hospital staff who have cared from him.

Amazon staff arranged a scavenger hunt for him in one of the aisles of merchandise, where he found and pulled 10 items from shelves and delivered them to yellow bins used to fulfill orders. He also helped package them, boxing up board games, a Star Wars Lego kit, some Fire tablets, an Echo speaker, and more. Staff then surprised the boy and his family by revealing that the packages were for them.

“We’ve been waiting so long for him to do stuff, and it’s finally time that he can go out. So we’re just happy,” his mom says.

He says his mind was “blown” by the experience.

“It turned my life — I was upside down — back up,” he said.

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