Bingo event to help Reeltown student

Contributed

Reeltown High School student Melody Jackson had so much fun playing Charity Bingo at a benefit last fall that she told her aunt, Jennifer Spain, she wanted to play again.

Friends of Melody are going to make that happen for the 16 year old who has been diagnosed with adrenocortical carcinoma, a rare terminal cancer.

Charity Bingo will be held Sunday, Feb. 4 at the 1220 Warehouse on Gilmer Avenue in Tallassee.

Spaghetti plates will be sold for $10 and 100 percent of the proceeds will go to Melody and her mom, Voni Jackson, to help pay for any needs Melody has. The doors open at 12:30 for the spaghetti lunch and it’s a first come, served event. Plates will be sold until sold out.

Melody with her mother Voni and representatives of Alabama's Make-A-Wish Foundation. Photos by Suzannah Solomon Wilson

Bingo starts at 2 p.m. and a donation of $10 per person is requested to play. Lots of great prizes have been donated, and Bingo will be called until all the prizes run out.

Melody with Jake Hornsby (left) and Arthur Woods

“People can come and dine in and stay for Bingo or take lunch home if they’d like. Of you can just show up for Bingo at 2. You don’t have to participate in both activities. We want to maximize the benefits for Melody so we decided to combine the two events. We’re hoping for a big crowd,” said Suzannah Solomon Wilson, one of the volunteers.

Melody has had a big week. On Tuesday, she was surprised with a special assembly at Reeltown High School. Her favorite football playes, Jake Hornsby and Arthur Woods, escorted her into the cafetorium where she was awarded her 2026 diploma, her cap and gown, her class ring and her letterman jacket for band. After the ceremony she was treated to a senior photo shoot.

But the biggest surprise was for her fellow band members. Melody’s greatest wish was for the Rebel Pride band to have new uniforms. Band director Eric Thompson and school administrators have been working with Make-A-Wish since last fall to try to make that happen, unbeknownst to the community. Representatives from Make-A-Wish were there to let Melody know her wish had been granted.