Williamson County SWAT Team Makes Memorable Visit To Hospital In Visiting Young Fan

ROUND ROCK, TX — Williamson County Sheriff's Office deputies descended in force at the Dell Children's Medical Center, rappelling down the side of the building to gain entry on Monday night.

No, this wasn't a crisis in the making. Instead, the deputies dropped by in dramatic fashion to help buoy the spirits of Round Rock High School student Clayton Dalton, 17, an admirer of the local force who is battling cancer.

According to a report on KVUE, Sheriff Robert Chody befriended the young man during the lawman's campaign for office. Dalton, who was one of the sheriff's Twitter followers, requested uniform patches and the became fast friends.

But Chody wanted to do something more for the young man. So he marshaled his forces together to give him a day he would always remember, recruiting member of the SWAT team to drop by for a hospital visit.

They redefined the term "dropping in," coming down from the roof of the hospital to reach him and pose for photos. After their dramatic entrance, 14 members of the SWAT team presented Dalton with a signed helmet and several of those patches he yearned for to go with his newly issued deputy regulation shirt.

Dalton was surprised by the grand gesture, and wondered what all the fuss was about.

"I never thought I'd impact people's lives so much," he told the news station. "It makes me feel special."

The visit was just what the doctor ordered, as a video of Dalton showing his joy clearly illustrates. Dalton is suffering from stage 4 of a disease called Alveolar Rhabdomysarcoma, a rare ailment affecting the soft tissues. He's expected to begin chemotherapy and radiation treatments next week that will continue for the next 36 weeks, according to a GoFundMe page set up to help defray the cost of hospitalization.

But as the video shows, his spirit is strong in spite of that hurdle.

The whole thing lasted just a few minutes, but the memories of that day will last a lifetime. Come to think of it, the officers making the scene shouldn't be known as Williamson County's finest. In many ways, the members of the WILCO SWAT team and the rest of the force are much more than that: They're the world's finest.

You can follow Dalton's journey on Facebook at Clayton's Crusaders. Those wishing to contribute to his GoFundMe page created to help the family with hospital bills and related expenses can click here. Created Feb. 3, the page has raised $3,215 of a $10,000 goal from among 50 people.

>>> Photo above via Clayton Dalton's Facebook page