A happy birthday for Knox

WASHINGTON - The pandemic didn't stop soon-to-be 5-year-old Knox Ward from celebrating his birthday in style.

In lieu of a regular birthday party, Knox's mother and grandmother helped arrange a surprise birthday parade on Saturday as an early celebration for Ward's birthday on Monday.

As part of the parade, three police cars along with a group of family and friends drove by Ward's house on Saturday afternoon with balloons and gifts.

'I saw it around town a couple times and just thought I'd call the police station and see if they could do it for Knox,” Cassandra, Knox's mother, said.

'We kept it a secret. He didn't know until today,” she added.

Knox's grandmother, Dianne Wellington, said the parade would hopefully bring a little joy since Ward wasn't able to celebrate like he usually would.

'When they're this little, they don't understand why they can't have a party. It's a little sad, so we wanted to do this instead,” she said.

Knox, who enjoyed the parade but was a little scared of the police sirens, said he was looking forward to presents and his dinosaur birthday cake.

'I like dinosaurs. My favorite is the T-rex,” he said.