Melody Jackson’s dying wish will come true tonight at Reeltown High School’s football field.

After receiving a terminal cancer diagnosis last summer, Jackson, a 16-year-old Reeltown High alto saxophonist, decided to spend her Make-A-Wish grant on new band uniforms. The small, rural band hadn’t replaced its uniforms in nine years, and officials estimated that it would cost $30,000 to upgrade them.

Jackson had kept the plan a secret for an entire semester, working with school officials to figure out the logistics. She died Feb. 2, surrounded by family and friends.

“Melody could have chosen virtually anything, but she wanted to give back to her friends and community,” Reeltown High band director Eric Thompson said this week. “Her courage and kindness are a testament to how we all possess the ability to make a difference and to make decisions that positively affect those around us.”

At Friday’s halftime show, the Reeltown Band will unveil their new look. On their jackets, pins designed by Jackson’s brother will sport the words, “Within Our Hearts There Will Always Ring A Melody.”

Before the show, Make-A-Wish Alabama will present Jackson’s family with her band jacket and a plaque commemorating her legacy. The foundation told AL.com that Jackson’s wish was one of the most unique requests they’ve ever received.

“Every wish we grant creates ripples,” Make-A-Wish Alabama President and CEO Tracy Bennett Smith said in a news release. “However, Melody’s wish far exceeds anything that we have seen before, and it will continue to touch the lives of others for years to come. We want to extend our heartfelt gratitude to our board of directors and supporters as well as DeMoulin Brothers & Company for bringing Melody’s wish to life.”

Relatives described Jackson as a remarkably selfless teen, who always put others first, and who had a sense of humor that kept them laughing through her final days.

In Jackson’s obituary, her family described her as “a single soul sent to us by God. In her almost 17 years, she was able to touch the souls of so many that knew her, and so many that didn’t. Her experiences, her generosity and her story will be an inspiration to many, for years beyond measure.”

“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 in January. “She doesn’t do anything half-hearted.”

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