RIO RANCHO, N.M. (KRQE) –They met only once, but a strong bond ties a local paramedic to her former patient. Now, she’s hoping to help grant a big wish for a child battling cancer.

Paramedic Jennifer Saiz is a cancer survivor but her patient is still in the fight. She says his joyful spirit touched her so much, she wanted to help check off an item on his bucket list.

At the Dimas’ household, there are plenty of presents wrapped under the tree. But what’s on 10-year-old Elijah’s Christmas list can’t be tied with a bow.

“Visit the Pokémon center in Japan, get Nickelodeon slimed,” Elijah Dimas said.

It’s not a Christmas list but rather a bucket list. Elijah has an aggressive form a cancer called Ewing’s Sarcoma that can affect the bones or the soft tissue around the bones.

“Right now with his treatment, everything is uncertain and we want to make sure he does as much as possible,” said Anthony Dimas.

So his parents posted the list to Elijah’s Facebook page.

“When they posted his bucket list and said they were stopping most of the treatment, I knew I wanted to do something for him,” said  Saiz.

Saiz met the family once when transporting the 10-year-old.

“Just his contagious smile, just his really positive upbeat attitude,” Saiz said.

That was 2 years ago but Saiz said she kept up with his journey ever since and being a cancer survivor herself, “I’ll never identify with what Elijah’s going through but I understand,” Saiz said.

There was one thing on Elijah’s list she thought she could manage.

“Go to a live Raiders game,” Elijah Dima said.

So she started a Go Fund Me page to pay for the tickets to the game, airfare, hotel and spending money.

“He is 10 years old and he deserves the world,” Saiz said.

She hopes to give him as much of it as she can and give his parents enough memories to last a lifetime.

Saiz said she has already raised enough to pay for the family’s airfare and game tickets. The game is in Oakland on the 17th against the Dallas Cowboys. She is still raising money for their hotel.

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