It may have started with a dream, but Steve Davis didn’t wait long to stop dreaming and start doing.
“I started out young,” Steve said. “I was a safety patrol officer at the school.”
Steve knew in elementary school what he wanted to be when he grew up.
“I was so enthralled with fire and police that as far back as I can remember, that’s all I wanted to do in life,” Steve said.
Steve joined the Boulder County Sheriff’s Office explorers program when he was 15-years-old. By his 21st birthday, Steve was a Denver Police officer. He would serve in several other departments until his retirement.
“You know, some 50 years later, I retired as a police officer and had a really good career,” he said. “I was also a volunteer firefighter at one time.”
Steve’s one of those guys they say was born to do what he did. On Saturday morning, he met six-year-old Reily Doi, who’s one of those guys, too.
“Anything dealing with firefighters he loves,” said Reily’s mom, Elizabeth.
Perhaps that explains why Reily recently begged his mom to let him join Aurora firefighters working a house fire in their neighborhood.
“Reily saw the smoke, he heard the sirens and was like ‘momma we gotta go help. We gotta go!’” Elizabeth said.
Aurora firefighters knocked out the fire, and noticed the inquisitive little boy wearing a firefighter costume a few sizes too small.
“His was a little small!” Elizabeth recalled with a laugh.
Firefighters invited Reily to come closer, showed off their gear and explained what they were doing. Steve Davis later heard about the story and saw pictures of Reily in a uniform he figured could use an upgrade.
“I went and looked around the internet and they make actual firefighter costumes for kids,” Steve explained.
Steve picked up some kid-sized bunker gear complete with rubber boots and a helmet and got in touch with Reily’s mom. On Saturday morning, Reily came to Aurora Fire Station 11 for a tour that led to an unexpected gift. Steve Davis and Aurora Fire Lieutenant Tom McKay presented Reily with the new uniform.
“Now you’ll look just like the rest of the fireman!” Steve said, after Reily had put on his new gear.
Reily got a chance to sit in a fire truck and practiced with a real fire hose before Steve gave him one more gift.
“This is called a safety patrol badge,” Steve said, holding out the shiny badge. “I got this when I was in elementary school.”
While Reily’s new uniform may have made him look the part, it was the badge that made more than one dream come true.
“I have a feeling that kid’s going to be a firefighter when he grows up,” Steve said.
