Drive-by birthday celebration held for 6-year-old Long Beach boy with terminal brain cancer

LONG BEACH, Calif. (KABC) -- Countless cars showed up in Long Beach over the weekend for a bittersweet birthday celebration in honor of a 6-year-old boy who is battling terminal brain cancer.

Nicholas Carranza is currently receiving hospice care at his Long Beach home. Doctors say this will likely be his last birthday, so his family wanted to go all-out.

Wendy Carranza, Nicholas' mom, estimates that thousands turned out Saturday for a massive drive-by caravan down Artesia Boulevard to make it a truly special celebration.

"This might be my last birthday with my first child and for it to be a beautiful memory like this, and to know how many people have surrounded and loved him, completely fills our hearts and means the entire world to us," his mom said.

Many of them were complete strangers but they showed up to bring Nicholas some birthday happiness.