San Antonian Damon Billick, who died at the age of 12 last week after battling cancer, will receive a rare honor later today, News Radio 1200 WOAI reports.
Damon will be given a San Antonio Fire Department escort from his funeral at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church in Selma to Holy Cross Cemetery on Nacogdoches Rd.
Damon's steady work on behalf of cancer victims and his love for the Fire Department inspired many across the country, including superhero actor Chris Evans, who Tweeted after Damon died last week, 'Damon had the kind of strength I only pretend to have on screen.'
Damon, who loved the San Antonio Fire Department and said he wanted to become a firefighter, inspired the creation of the 'Cancer Bell' at the children's center at University Hospital. The bell, which is fire bell from a mid 20th Century fire truck, rings by tradition every time a patient completes chemotherapy.
Damon rang the bell when it was installed, but his cancer returned.
Fire Chief Chares Hood issued a touching tribute to Damon when he died last week.
"Rest in peace, friend," Hood wrote. "And thank you for teaching us what a real hero is."
PHOTO: SAN ANTONIO FIRE DEPARTMENT