Melody Jackson could have met Nick Saban or gone to the Statue of Liberty, or gotten her mom a new Christmas tree. But instead, she’s giving back to her local high school.

Jackson, a Tallapoosa County 16-year-old living with a rare and aggressive form of cancer, recently received a gift from Make-A-Wish Alabama, which supports local children with critical illnesses.

But rather than spending her “wish” on herself, the Reeltown High School sophomore is putting it toward new uniforms for her school’s marching band.

“Everything that that child does, before she takes that first step, she thinks about who it’s going to affect and how it’s going to affect them,” Jackson’s aunt, Jennifer Spain, told AL.com. “She doesn’t do anything half-hearted.”

Jackson has played alto saxophone since middl school, and “just loved it,” Spain said.

“She knew that she could fulfill that need, not just for one kid but for every one of those kids in the band,” she said. “She’s just that way.”

Make-A-Wish representatives made the announcement at a surprise graduation ceremony held for Jackson on Jan. 23 at the high school. The foundation told AL.com it was one of the most unique requests they’ve ever received.

“In my five years here at Make-A-Wish Alabama, I haven’t ever had a give-back wish,” said Amanda Dickey, the foundation’s outreach manager. “So it’s very unique and it really showcases Melody’s heart and her love for her community.”

“Her extreme altruism where she’s thinking beyond her and her condition is just unbelievable,” Make-A-Wish Alabama CEO Tracy Bennett Smith told AL.com.

Jackson was diagnosed with adrenocortical carcinoma, which affects just one in a million Americans, after experiencing some health issues at band camp last summer, Spain said. She was recently given just days to live.

“She’s still just a big, sweet kid at heart, that’s gone through this and that has had to grow up a lot since July,” Spain said.

Spain said the school community has wrapped around Jackson ever since her diagnosis in early August. Students wore ribbons in her honor, and named her honorary homecoming queen. When her condition took a turn over the holidays, the principal and the band director were working with Make-A-Wish, almost daily, to make the donation possible, Spain said.

“There is not one person up there that has not reached out, messaged, been there, called, helped us keep Voni (Jackson’s mother) afloat during all of this,” she said. “I just have never seen anything like it.”

Eric Thompson, the school’s band director, said he was met with a flood of emotions when Jackson approached him about her plan earlier in the fall. The school’s uniforms, he said, were probably about nine years old, but replacing them can cost more than a new car.

Throughout that time, Jackson, her family, and school leaders had managed to keep the plan a secret from most of the school.

“I don’t know that she’ll ever see it,” Spain said, through tears, “but we’ll know her legacy will live through that uniform.”

Thompson said the school will need to raise some additional funds to finish the project, but he is currently working with uniform companies to finalize the design.

“It’s just amazing that a person who is going through so much would choose to give to others,” Thompson said. “And what an example set for everybody not just for the band, and our community in our school, but just for us as human beings.”

Spain is collecting donations for the Jackson family’s future burial expenses.