Zoo Miami helps make sick boy's wish to be a zookeeper for a day come true
MIAMI - Quite the adventure Monday for Dale Zimmerman, a six-year-old who came down from South Carolina to become the newest zookeeper at Zoo Miami.
Dale is battling Neurofibromatosis 1, a disease that causes tumors to form all over his body. His mom said it has been a long road in his short six years.
"He was diagnosed with NF1 when he was 16 months old," said Heidi Zimmerman.
Dale's wish was to spend the day working with the animals. Make A Wish Southern Florida and Zoo Miami came together to make it all happen with a little help from the animals.
All the fun was a way to help Dale forget what he is going through.
"Just building some joy for what's going to come next," said Zimmerman.
Dale and his mom will spend one more day in Florida before heading back home.
He will start another round of chemo when he gets home. His mom said she feels very lucky her son got to experience the joy at the zoo and they are ready for the challenges ahead.