A New Rochelle sanitation crew got a special honor for lifting the spirits of a young boy fighting cancer.

Will Smith, Rashad Amaro and Leroy Johnson received the city's employee recognition award in council chambers Thursday. They developed a bond with a 5-year-old named Leo on their route.

Leo was recently in the hospital recovering from leukemia. During that time, he missed seeing the sanitation crew.

He drew a photo of the sanitation truck and gave it to the crew when he returned home.

The workers were so touched that they brought Leo a miniature sanitation truck and invited him onto the big truck to check it out.

Johnson, who has a child fighting sickle cell anemia, says he was touched to the point of tears that Leo took an interest in his job.

Leo and his family were there to see the crew receive their award.