It's not often you get to grant a wish, or even see one come true.

On Aug. 6, the crew of the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75) joined together with Make-A-Wish® Mid-Atlantic to help 16-year-old Peter achieve his life-long goal.

"Since fourth or fifth grade, I've wanted to be a naval aviator," said Peter. "We live within 20 miles of Annapolis and everyone's a Navy family. I can always remember when I was a little kid, we had this movie about the USS Enterprise and it just inspired me."

Peter is a cancer survivor. He was diagnosed with Ewing's Sarcoma on Aug. 1, 2014. Just over a year later, with the cancer in remission, his wish to experience a day in the life of a naval aviator was granted aboard Truman.

"This is the farthest away from home I've ever been in memory, and I don't quite know what I expected," said Peter. "I guess I expected I'd get to come and watch people do stuff, go up on the bridge and look out at everything, but it's been more than that - it's been interactive."

Peter met Truman underway, flying in on board a C-2A Greyhound transportation aircraft. He arrived with his family, wearing a flight suit, and bringing enough excitement to power the ship.

"He has the biggest smile I've seen in my life," said Lt. K. L. Muhlenberg, a tactical action officer aboard Truman. "The first time I saw Peter was up on the Flag Bridge and he was the first one in the room. I knew it was him instantly because his smile just filled up the room. He's such a happy and appreciative person; just a really cool kid."

Due to his previous experience flying F/A-18s, Muhlenberg was chosen to be an escort for Peter's visit.

"It's a real pleasure to do these events," said Muhlenberg. "Peter's dream was to be a naval aviator jet pilot."

Peter toured many parts of the ship, spent time on the flight deck during flight operations, flew in an MH-60S Sea Hawk helicopter, and put on full aviation gear to sit in the pilot's seat of an EA-18G Growler.

Out on the flight deck, Peter became a pilot - well, as much as he could without years of formal training.

"It was more than I expected," Peter said. "I didn't quite get to fly, but I wouldn't trust me at the helm of a helicopter or a jet either. Not yet. Stay in the Navy long enough and you'll see me up on the flight deck."

While touring Truman, Peter received hands-on training with some of the ship's equipment, including a .50-caliber machine gun, with Gunner's Mate 2nd Class M. D. Kenworthy.

"Unfortunately, I couldn't let him shoot it. We did some dry-fire training," said Kenworthy. "He got to rack it, load the ammo, look through the sights and put on the body armor. I got the feeling that he liked guns. He did it very well; better than some people that I've worked with before. He was very highly motivated and did great. He's got a spot as a gunner's mate if he wants it."

By the end of the trip, Peter's positive energy had left his mark on most everyone he met.

"It was a really amazing experience, mainly because of how excited he was to be here," said Naval Aircrewman (Helicopter) 2nd Class C. Lay, one of the Sailors who took Peter on his helicopter ride. "Seeing someone that thrilled to be around what we do is great. He is really smart, too. He asked questions about flight that a lot of junior crewmen and pilots would be asking. It's clearly a passion to him."

At the end of the flight, Lay gave Peter the rescue swimmer patch from his flight suit as a souvenir from the visit.

"It's kind of a tradition to give our patches away," said Lay. "I had actually been saving that one. We had them made in Bahrain, so there are only 15 copies of that specific patch. It seemed like the right time to finally give it away."

Peter managed to inspire many of the Sailors he met. Lay described Peter's enthusiasm as "refreshing" and explained he would remember this tour for a long time.

"It was a really rewarding experience," said Muhlenberg. "To be able to make a kid's day is better than anything in the world. This visit is something I would do a thousand times. It feels good to see the crew make a person that happy."

Peter and his family launched off Truman's flight deck the next evening. After having his wish granted and living the Navy life for a day, Peter said he holds military members in high regard and looks forward to a life of working with them.

"I've always looked up to people in the military and I've always tried to hold myself to be disciplined," he added. "Thank you so much for the job you do for us. You're like a big family and it's really amazing."

Truman is currently underway in the Atlantic conducting carrier qualifications for an upcoming deployment.

For more news from USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75), visit www.navy.mil/ .

For more information on Make-A-Wish® Mid-Atlantic, visit midatlantic.wish.org