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San Francisco has transformed into Gotham City Friday morning, fulfilling a special 5-year-old boy's wish as he comes to the city’s rescue as a tiny caped crusader.
5-year-old Miles, who lives with his parents in Tulelake in Siskiyou County, became Batkid as his adventures commenced at 10 a.m., but he’s already a superhero. The little boy has battled leukemia for most of his life and he’s winning. Miles is now in remission.
The Make-A-Wish Foundation is making Miles’ dreams of becoming Batman, or Batkid, a reality.
"The wish he expressed carried so much in it. We are able to have fun with it, we'll be having a good time," said Eric Johnston of the Make-A-Wish foundation, who will be dressing up as Batman and accompanying Miles.
Social media has come alive Friday morning with supporters tweeting photos using the hashtag #SFBatkid and posting to Facebook. Thousands of volunteers are helping the wish come true by participating in the events, which will include a flash mob where the public is invited to turn out and root Miles on.
Miles received acrobatic training Thursday in preparing for his busy day Friday.
"If you really want to be Batman you have to have the skills to fight crime. So he is coming here to learn some tumbling and acrobatics," said Barry Kendall of the Circus Center in San Francisco.
Batkid will start his day saving a damsel in distress along the cable car line, then he’ll stop the Riddler from robbing a vault before pausing for some superkid fuel at the Burger Bar. But he’ll have to eat fast so he can be ready for a phone call telling him the Penguin has kidnapped San Francisco Giants mascot, Lou Seal.
While Miles’ adventure hasn’t quite started, he already has a huge online following. People from as far away as Egypt have posted signs of encouragement on Facebook and the Tweets have been non-stop. Even 49ers legend Joe Montana is ready to follow the Batkid's adventures.
“Never in my wildest dreams did I think SF would respond this way," said Patricia Wilson of the Make-A-Wish Foundation.
Organizers say the already famous caped-crusader and his family don’t even know all that is in store for him Friday.
More information about the day of events for Miles, or information on how to donate to the foundation, can be found online at the Make-A-Wish Foundation website.
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