He’s just 6 but he’s already an honorary police officer and a superhero

On April 20 the Plainfield Police Department had a “swearing in” ceremony for a 6-year-old boy currently battling a rare and aggressive brain tumor.

Just 5% of people with this tumor are still alive in 12 to 18 months, Kelly VanHyning of Channahon, the boy’s father, said.

Breckin VanHyning of Channahon, who’s dream is to become a police officer, is now an honorary one, and it’s all because of their neighbor Dean Klier, an officer with the department, Breckin’s mother Kim VanHyning said.

Klier said he met the VanHyning family when he moved into the neighborhood last year and that Breckin immediately became “infatuated” with Klier’s uniform, stories and police equipment. Breckin especially liked hanging out at Klier’s house when Klier’s good friends and fellow officers Cody Columbus and Ryley Martin were there.

“Breckin calls us ‘his dudes,’” Klier said. “We became like a little foursome of friends.”

When Klier heard Breckin was ill, he wanted to make Breckin’s dream come true. So Klier talked to supervisor Colin Mulacek, who liked the idea – and so did police chief John Konopek, Klier said.

“I found out his Make-A-Wish request was to go to work with me,” Klier said. “that hit home because we were already in the process of doing it.”

Breckin was put to work right away.

Someone had stolen candy, so Breckin had to interrogate “suspects” and dust for prints, Kim said. Breckin knew he had the right person when the main suspect pulled down his mask to reveal chocolate around his mouth, she added.

Breckin also helped several officers look for a “suspect” who had a “warrant out for him,” Klier said.

“We handcuffed him and brought him to the jail,” Klier said. “He got to see how the whole process worked.”

Klier said the entire neighborhood has gone “above and beyond” for Breckin and his family.

“He’s an amazing kid,” Klier said. “Life is precious, and you’ve got to enjoy every minute of it. That’s why we’re doing for him as much as we can.”

So despite tests, completing six weeks of radiation and now at the halfway point of six, six-week rounds of heavy chemotherapy, Breckin is having a good year.

He’s ridden big rollercoasters, gone indoor skydiving, had a room makeover and keeps spoiling one of his nurses – a grandmother with a grandson about his age, Kim said – by bringing her candy and flowers whenever he sees her, Kim said.

During Breckin’s radiation treatments, a certain “Dr. John” would leave the clinic every day to take Breckin to Dunkin’ Donuts, Kim said.

Breckin has another big event coming up: a “Hot Rods and Superheroes” car show in his honor on June 20.

So how did Breckin go from healthy to very sick?

Literally, overnight.

A stomachache and a quick-thinking nurse

On Dec. 8, Breckin said he had a stomachache. Kim chalked it up to nerves over an upcoming math test until – Breckin started vomiting. All that day, he hung out on the couch, weak and unable “keep anything down,” she said.

“The next morning he started throwing up blood,” Kim said.

Kelly took off work and the couple sought emergency treatment at Edward Hospital in Naperville, Kim said. Breckin got an IV and had blood work, an Xray and tests for strep and COVID-19.

“We kept saying, ‘Oh, my gosh! He’s got COVID,’” Kim recalled.

Then Breckin’s parents and a nurse noticed the left side of his face drooped when he smiled. So Breckin had a CT scan.

“The next thing we knew, the doctor sat us down and told us there was a large mass on his brain and they were transferring us immediately to Lurie’s,” Kim said. “The ambulance was already on its way.”

Breckin had immediate surgery at Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago to drain fluids from his brain, Kim said.

“They told us that if the nurse had sent us home or told us it was a virus, he might not have made it,” Kim said. “If the ventricles had closed, he would have been in a coma and probably died the next morning. So she saved him just by loving on him and see that he wasn’t smiling right.”

Breckin was in the hospital 11 days. During that time, and after his swelling decreased, a biopsy was performed. The family received his diagnosis on Dec. 22: a grade four thalamic glioblastoma.

Most glioblastomas come with a very short life expectancy. Breckin’s was also inoperable, due to its location. A surgery would paralyze him, Kim said. She and Kelly sought a second opinion at Mayo Clinic, where the opinion was the same, that Breckin should have “quality over quantity” of life, Kim said.

So, then, what is the goal of treatment?

“To prolong life,” Kim said. “We’re trying to be more than the 5%.”

Support for a little superhero

So Breckin had six weeks of radiation and is “such a good boy” abut swallowing his chemotherapy pills without complaining, Kim said. He even lies absolutely still for his MRIS, she added.

Once, when a nurse giving Breckin a shot realized he was an honorary police officer, she immediately asked if Breckin would ever pull her over for speeding.

“He told her, ‘I’d give you a warning ticket,’” Kim said.

Breckin’s GoFundMe account has reached nearly $50,000 of its $75,000 goal, a boon when the family was driving nearly three hours every day roundtrip from Channahon to Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago for radiation treatments, as gas and parking fees quickly add up.

Supporters have even designed a superhero T-shirt featuring “Breckin the Brave” to help raise funds for the family.

A friend of Kim’s from high school went on Facebook to ask for police badges from all 50 states so she can quilt them together for him, Kim said. The response was swift with badges coming from all over the world, she added.

When it’s too warm for Breckin to play outside – the tumor on his thalamus messes with his body’s ability to regulate his body temperature – the neighborhood kids come inside to watch movies with him and his sisters: Ashlyn, 9, and Brooklyn, 6 and Breckin’s twin, Kim said.

In short, the support “has been pretty overwhelming,” Kelly said.

On Tuesday, Breckin’s GoFundMe page said his latest MRI showed his tumor has shrunk a little and is considered stable. Breckin even had some improvement in his platelets, the page said.

Breckin was recently invited to attend a retirement party for a senior police officer. At the door, Breckin, in uniform, told his father he couldn’t come inside because he wasn’t an officer.

But there’s still a time when a father’s judgment trumps the officer’s – especially when the officer in question is still only 6 years old.

“I went inside,” Kelly said.

To buy a Breckin the Brave T-Shirt, visit bonfire.com/breckin-the-brave-1/

To donate to Support Breckin VanHyning’s Battle With Cancer on GoFundMe, visit gofund.me/106cd2d5.

IF YOU GO

WHAT: Hot Rods and Superheroes

WHEN: 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. June 20

WHERE: 502 Twin Rail Drive, Minooka

COST: $15 per car if you wear a superhero shirt. Otherwise, $20 per car.

ETC: Raffles baskets, 50/50, DJ. Food and drink available for purchase at Twin Rail Pub. Proceeds benefit Breckin VanHyning’s family.

INFO: Visit the Hot Rods and Superheroes event on Facebook.