POTEAU, Okla. (KFSM) — In September of 2019, 10-year-old Blake Standridge was diagnosed with leukemia.
The family was immediately transferred to St. Jude’s Hospital in Memphis.
His grandmother Kim Standridge calls him a fighter.
“Total devastation at first, but I knew he was a strong kid. He would battle through it," Kim said.
Because of an outpouring of support from people in LeFlore County the family started the Facebook page #BLACKSTRONG #GOBIGRED.
More than 3,000 people are now following his journey.
“It is a village. It’s not a few people. It’s not one person. They’ve wrapped the entire family," Kim said.
Blake spends most days receiving treatment and undergoing physical therapy, but over the weekend he was sitting in his hospital bed when he got a call from Duck Dynasty star Willie Robertson.
“We talked about duck hunting. Maybe getting to go up there to his house," Blake said.
Blake even showed Robertson one of his own duck calls he uses to help strengthen his lungs.
He's had about 300 units of blood and the family hopes his story will inspire others to donate to save a life.
“He’s one of 53,000 St. Jude patients that require blood or organs over the years," Kim said.
The family is nearing 70 days in the hospital but despite some good days and bad days, they’re all optimistic Blake will beat cancer.
For his part, Blake says he can’t wait to leave the hospital so he can go duck hunting, play sports and eat some delicious food.
Blake’s doctors say he continues to make great strides and although they’re not 100% certain, they are confident Blake will make a very good recovery.
Blake's mother Ashley Williams told 5NEWS on Jan. 19 that Blake has made a lot of progress.
"Blake has made a tremendous amount of progress over the last couple of weeks. During physical therapy, he is now able to stand up using a standing aid called a Sara Stedy. This past week, he was able to tolerate having dialysis two times rather than three. The doctors have also decided to not schedule dialysis for the upcoming week unless he needs it. Last week, he started his new treatment plan. He is tolerating the chemo but he is very tired."
Williams shared a Facebook post Jan. 18 with a video Si Robertson sent Blake with words of encouragement.