Dominic Barone spent three years fighting leukemia only to see no one show up to his party in July. So a group of strangers threw him a better one. Jacob Newby,


Before all the joy and surprise Dominic Barone experienced Sunday, the 8-year-old Pensacola boy went through an afternoon of heartbreak this past July.

That's when the boy's mother, Erin, threw a party for her son to celebrate the news that he had won a three-year battle with childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia. 

After all the spinal taps, blood draws, chemotherapy and overnight hospital stays, it was a day meant to celebrate the end of that horrible chapter of Dominic's life.

But the party's turnout was lackluster. Erin recalled her son putting on a happy face, despite only a few family members showing up to the party. She said he was brave that day — like he was brave through his cancer treatment — but she could see right through him. 

"After a couple hours, he's like, 'It's OK nobody came, at least we had cake,'" Erin said. "There was his twin brother, his older brother and sister and my boyfriend's son — kids he sees every day. He said he had a good day, but he had tears building up in his eyes every time he looked out the window looking for people." 

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Dominic expected a lot of the kids he interacted with during chemo to show up to his party, and Erin invited as many of those families as she could. But for one reason or another, not many people showed up. 

Erin took to Facebook to express her heartbreak over the situation, and soon after sharing the post, she received a response she never could have imagined.

A screenshot of her post was shared in local Facebook groups, and that's how a network of local moms, led by Jennifer Riddle and Lesley Davis, decided to right the wrong and organize a bigger, better surprise party in Cantonment.

"To me, personally, it became more personal because I have one child and he's 14 months now, and now that I'm a mother, I put myself in other moms' shoes," Riddle said. "I couldn't imagine going through what the mom did, either. So, it just shows with all the bad publicity people get and the bad news and what not, that there's still people out there that really care and that are good people." 

Davis, a high school friend of Erin's, took on the role of head organizer. 

"I want him to realize how many people have cheered him on and still are because that has to be a lonely feeling after all that he's been through, thinking, 'Nobody wanted to come help me celebrate this?'" Davis said, two weeks before the party. "I don't want that to be the last taste he has in his mouth after his victory over cancer." 

All Davis had to do was send a few messages and make a few phone calls before she realized it wasn't only individual citizens in the community who were willing to do something nice for Dominic — it was local businesses, too. 

Buffalo Rock, an independent Pepsi bottler out of Birmingham, Alabama, donated two dozen free cases of Mountain Dew, Pepsi and water to the party. Little Caesar's in Cantonment chipped in 15 free pizzas. Joy Inflatables out of Pensacola donated a free bounce house. 

A personalized merchandise company in Pensacola called Belue Fox Creations printed up a T-shirt for Dominic that read "The Incredible Dominic" and was designed with the font and color schemes from the 2004 computer-animated movie "The Incredibles." Belue Fox made a customized koozie for Dominic, as well. 

"It's amazing, I didn't know that people actually cared so much," Erin said on Sunday. "It's just the little things. For complete strangers to do something for another family, I'm just at a loss for words."

The party was originally scheduled for Sept. 2 but rain postponed it for another two weeks.

When Dominic walked into the pavilion Sunday at Solutia Park in Cantonment, he watched 30 to 40 people jump up and yell "Surprise!" at the same time noticing a "Surprise Dominic" banner hanging from the pavilion's ceiling. The 8-year-old threw his arms up in the air and began jumping up and down with excitement.

For a few moments, he looked around, almost in awe. 

"It's amazing!" Dominic shouted seconds later when Davis handed him his "Incredible Dominic" shirt. 

"Look at all the pizzas!" he said, still overcome with joy. 

Dominic was diagnosed with leukemia in April 2015 after battling what his mom initially thought was a cold that wouldn't go away. She credited Sacred Heart Hospital doctors and nurses for keeping Dominic upbeat, and said her son never let the cancer break him. 

"Four-year-olds, you know, they fall down and they cry. For him to go to every single blood draw and come out of it and say, 'Hey, I was brave. I didn't even cry,' he just took it like a champ," Erin said. "I definitely wouldn't have had that strength."

The car ride from their home to Solutia Park in Cantonment was only about five minutes, but Erin said her son truly had no idea what he was in for. She told him it was a birthday party for a friend's child. 

"Dominic saw the bounce house from the car and said, 'This is going to be an awesome party,' so he was already getting excited," Erin said. "It didn't hit him until he saw that 'Dominic' sign right there. He usually never goes too long without talking and he was just completely speechless." 


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