RCMP Raid Kamloops School

A group of RCMP officers, guns at the ready, made its way through  the smoke-filled halls, knowing there were eight equally armed males waiting for them.

The floors were littered with bullets as the combatants tried to best each other — and capture a rubber chicken.

There was another goal — to provide Mitch Harlock with a few hours of fun with his buddies, something that has become all-important for his family now as they deal with the reality his cancer is terminal.

Mitch, now 14, was diagnosed with neuroblastoma in 2010 and, since then, he has spent much of his life in hospitals, listening to doctors, going through all the traditional cancer treatments and, in recent months, more experimental ones.

“Mitch’s attitude is a driving force for us,” mom Gina said.

“After the doctors talked with us, he said, ‘I don’t want to waste time being sad and depressed’ — so what choice do we have?”

Now, life is about fun and having as many normal days as possible.

Gina said she had been visualizing a Nerf-gun battle at Westsyde secondary, where Mitch attends school, for some time and, after getting an update from doctors, decided it was going to happen.

“I just had this inspiration for them to run around with uniformed officers chasing them,” Gina said, noting the uniforms were essential to making it real.

“I thought it would be fun for the cops, too, because they don’t get a lot of opportunity to do that.”

Gina contacted seven of Mitch’s friends, telling them all it was to be a surprise.

(Although, Mitch said, when they arrived at the school, “I saw one of my friends going in with a Nerf gun and sort of figured something was up.”)

Westsyde secondary principal Sean Lamoureux, gave the nod to use the school since Gina is a School District 73 employee.

Dad Will, a Kamloops firefighter, borrowed a smoke machine from work to add some atmosphere and cover for the sharpshooters.

Several of Gina’s friends, including Jen McLean, Tammy Jordan, Melissa Meikle, Liza McConnell and Joanne Piroddi, organized the contingent of officers and made sure there was pizza, pop, chips —and California rolls, a nod to Mitch’s new obsession with sushi — for the post-fight relaxation.

Ali Campmans handled camouflage-makeup duty for the full experience and Mitch’s sisters, Emily and Celeste, came over to share in the after-battle food.

Everyone got into it, Gina said, playing two games of capture the target in which combatants fought their way through the halls to find one of two rubber chickens before fighting their way back to the gym and dropping it into a basket before the other team.

At the end of the night, Team Mitch was declared the winner.

One of Gina’s other goals for the night was to have the boys — they are all Mitch’s age — interacting with the police in a positive way.

“It was so much fun watching the RCMP skulking through the hallways,” she said.

Mitch also declared it a lot of fun, especially when he complimented one of the officers on his Nerf gun and the Mountie gave it to him.

Later, Will received a text from one of the officers, thanking them for the evening.

“He said doing it just reminded him of all the reasons he joined the RCMP,” Will said.

The evening had an impact on Gina and Will, as well, with the couple realizing how important fun is, particularly now as the family comes to terms with Mitch’s terminal condition.

“It made me wonder when we stopped having fun,” Will said.

Gina agreed.

“Now, we’re having fun,” she said.

“We all even joke about dying now because, if we don’t, well, we might cry.”

http://www.kamloopsthisweek.com/mitch-normal-day-play/

Thats awesome!!! Great way to lift his spirits up.