When nine-year-old Christian faced leukemia in his hospital bed, he escaped by playing the role of a member of the Rebel Alliance battling the evil Galactic Empire. Christian carefully carried his X-Box to and from his hospital stays, finding escape and distraction in his favorite Star Wars video game.

When it was time for Christian to choose a wish, he decided to bring galactic adventures to life in his own yard: – he wished for a play fort shaped like the Millennium Falcon, the famous freighter piloted by Han Solo and his Wookie first mate, Chewbacca.

Little Mountain Productions, a local set-design and prop-making company, took on the challenge of creating a spot-on replica of the speedy ship that eluded Darth Vader and his minions. On his wish day, dozens of volunteers arrived at Christian’s house to unload the stellar fort from a flat bed into his front yard. Storm Troopers, Wookies and the Imperial Guard all appeared for the big reveal.

The bevy of people and planetary characters initially overwhelmed Christian when he first stepped out of his house. But he was soon lost in space inside his new fort, checking out the rigging and accessories. While his X-Box game can still keep him entertained during hospital visits, Christian now has a reason to fight even harder to get better and come home to board his Millennium Falcon.