Jonesboro, AR – (JonesboroRightNow.com) — March 13, 2025 — A Fox Meadow Elementary student got quite the surprise Wednesday morning when he had his Wish granted through the efforts of the Make-A-Wish Foundation and Nettleton Public Schools.
Under the pretense of his grade winning an art contest, 7-year-old Donte Slack Jr. and the rest of his first grade class were invited to a year-end pep rally at the Nettleton High School (NHS) Gymnasium. After some games with the high schoolers, Slack Jr. found out he was going to Disney World to meet Sonic the Hedgehog over spring break.
Slack Jr. is the son of Donte Slack Sr. and Towana Slack, who were there to help cheer him on along with his sister Dominique Slack.
After receiving his Wish, Slack Jr. said he was very excited and, being a dancer himself, said “I want to watch the people dance.”
Make-A-Wish volunteer Marya Langford said she and her partner, Kembralyn Redman, met with the family about nine months ago.
“This is a combined effort,” Langford said. “We really appreciate the fact that all the schools were able to be here to participate in this event and cheer him on. The good thing about this Wish is… he’s got still has a long road to go, but this is giving him hope, it’s giving him promise and it’s giving him the love and the support of not only his family, but the community and the school members to cheer him on every day. So, we love that, and we love to be a part of this with them.”
According to Slack, Sr., his son was diagnosed with ependymoma, a rare type of cancer in children. Slack Jr. had a malignant brain tumor growing on the outside of his brain.
“Most of the time it intertwines with the brain, but he’s just so happened to be in the right place where his doctor was able to get to it,” Slack Sr. said. “He went through the treatments, and he handled everything with such bravery. Even though it was a traumatic experience, Le Bonheur’s [Children’s] Hospital and St. Jude’s [Children’s Hospital] made everything feel like the pressure was off. It was just like family coming in to care for this little guy and nursing him back to health.”
Fox Meadow Elementary counselor Jenny Baugh said everyone had been counting down the days for the special Wish, noting how deserving young Slack was.
“He’s very thoughtful and considerate of other people,” Baugh said. “He saw me, and he said, ‘I just want to tell you thank you for making my heart happy’ and that just made my career.”
Nettleton Public Schools Assistant Superintendent Lacy Baker noted the district-wide effort that went into raising the $11,000 to grant the Wish.
“Every year the district comes together to do things for Make-A-Wish, and this year, when there was a child at Nettleton who could benefit from that… Well, it just worked out beautifully that the students could see their efforts that they do every year come to fruition,” Baker said.
NHS Senior Mason Waln said they hold Make-A-Wish very close to home because it is such an impactful event.
“We try and do as much as we physically can for it because we feel that it’s very beneficial to the community that we raise the money,” he said. “It really shows our students that it’s important and so they can grow up throughout their life knowing that it matters, and it makes a difference in somebody’s life.”