Glendale Police Sgt. Steve Robertson got his start in the cockpit at age five. His father would tuck a couple of phone books under him so he could see out of the family's Cessna 150.
"I just loved it, every kid loves flying," Robertson said. "He got me started and that is where I got the passion from."
On Friday, Robertson, now a helicopter pilot with the Glendale Police Department's air division, introduced another 5-year-old to the thrill of flying, treating La Crescenta Elementary School kindergartener Reece LoCicero to an aerial tour of greater Los Angeles.
"Reece loves flying and the fact that someone actually heard that this is a dream of his, it was really special to make [it] come true," his mother, Natalia LoCicero, said.
Reece has struggled with an undiagnosed illness since infancy, enduring long stays at Childrens Hospital Los Angeles with symptoms including severe fevers, internal bleeding and skin sores. The Montrose family was forced to take on thousands of dollars in loans to cover medical bills.