(Contributed photo courtesy of the Reagan family) Declan Reagan, son of Washougal Police Officer Francis Reagan, played this weekend with a velociraptor dinosaur toy, sent from people who work with “Jurassic World” and “Guardians of the Galaxy” actor Chris Pratt. Declan, 5, spent the weekend in Lincoln City, Oregon, with his twin brother, Adrian, their father, and mother, Lauren Reagan. Pratt recently sent an encouraging video to Declan and his family. Declan, 5, has been battling cancer off and on for two years.
Film and TV actor Chris Pratt recently sent an encouraging video to the young son of a Washougal police officer, who has been battling cancer off and on for two years.
Pratt, one of Declan Reagan’s favorite actors from several movies, including “Guardians of the Galaxy,” “Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2, Jurassic World” and the upcoming sequel, “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom,” due out June 22, sent the video Thursday, March 15, as Declan and his mother, Lauren Reagan, were traveling home from Memphis, Tennessee, to Portland.
When they saw Pratt’s video, Lauren said Declan smiled and she cried.
“He loved the video and cracked up laughing, (saying) that ‘it’s not Chris Pratt, that’s Owen,” Lauren said Sunday.
Pratt portrays Owen Grady, a dinosaur researcher, in “Jurassic World” and its sequel.
Declan and his mother were in Memphis for several days last week to have tests done at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and meet with doctors to determine if any clinical trial options were available for Declan. He has battled cancer off and on for two years.
A CT scan, conducted at St. Jude, showed a lesion, most likely an infection developing on the bottom of Declan’s lung.
Lauren said doctors made the recommendation that there is nothing they can do for Declan.
“He has had no immune system for so long that an infection is going to take him sooner than the cancer will,” she wrote on the “Declan the Dinosaur” Facebook page.
Declan’s sixth birthday is March 28. He and his twin brother, Adrian, love dinosaurs. In February, they, their mother, and their father, Francis, of East Vancouver, visited the movie sets of “Jurassic World” and “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom,” in Hawaii, provided by the Make a Wish Oregon program.
Francis has worked for the Washougal Police Department since 2014.
To view the video from Pratt and for more information about Declan’s cancer fight, visit www.facebook.com/DeclantheDinosaur.
