BILLINGS A 10-year-old Billings boy fighting a relapse of stage 4 neuroblastoma got a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity Friday when he triggered the pyrotechnics to kick off the rehearsal day at the Yellowstone International Air S how.Watch the full story here: Billings boy with rare cancer kicks off Yellowstone International Air Show pyrotechnicsThe roars of fighter jets and military planes are sounds 10-year-old Charlie Jumper has loved for years."I'm excited to look around because of the planes today, he said Friday.Charlie's been fascinated by airplanes and machines since he was a toddler, his parents, Tyler Jumper and Makenna Blanch, said. His interests have included the Titanic, World War II, military history, and, especially, airplanes.He's very outgoing. He loves airplanes, loves history, Tyler Jumper said. He hears a fact one time, and he remembers it forever, Blanch said.Charlie said he has a particular appreciation for the Blue Angels and Thunderbirds. His interest in the military also comes from his family.I really like the Air Force, like the Naval Air Force, or what the Blue Angels are flying for, the Navy, that's my favorite branch," said Charlie. "I really liked it because just a lot of my family was in the military, and my grandpa was in Operation Desert Storm."His dream is to one day move from watching the planes to flying them.I want to be a fighter pilot, Charlie said. Charlie's love of airplanes has continued through a childhood marked by cancer treatment. He was diagnosed with stage 4 neuroblastoma when he was about 2 1/2 years old. His parents said doctors discovered a tumor on his adrenal gland near his kidney, and the cancer had spread to his bone marrow.Charlie underwent treatment from about age 2 1/2 to 4, including chemotherapy, a bone marrow transplant, immunotherapy, and radiation.He eventually went into remission and remained cancer-free for nearly five years. Then, in 2025, the cancer returned.The relapse is actually pretty rare as late as he had it, Tyler Jumper said. Because of the specialized treatment he needs, Charlie and his family have been traveling to Utah for chemotherapy and immunotherapy.It's been kind of devastating for a little kid to go through that, Blanch said. One of the hardest things is being away from his friends and family here."As well as a 10-year-old can, he's handled it pretty well," added Tyler Jumper. "And no, he's definitely been scared, and it's scary to do, I think for anybody, but for a 10-year-old, I don't know if he understands everything he's going through."On Friday, Charlie's family was given a meaningful opportunity through Billings Clinic, which contacted them the day before.The hospital called and said, Hey, do you want to push a button and watch pyrotechnics? And I said, Sure, Charlie said. That phone call was the best phone call of my life. Charlie was given the chance to push the handle of a dynamite blasting machine and set off a pyrotechnics charge during the show's rehearsal, which was open to first responders, military, and active-duty personnel.Rick Myers, owner of Firewalkers International, said his crew which has performed at more than 150 air shows was honored to have Charlie take part."We've got an old dynamite blasting machine like you used to see on the Bugs Bunny show, and he's actually going to push the handle down, and he's going to set off a dynamite charge," Myers said.Myers said the moment was meaningful for his team. "I've been doing this for 32 years, and it's still a thrill every day," he said. "So I can't imagine it at his age being this little and getting to do something he'll remember for the rest of his life."Charlie said he rose to the occasion.I was a little nervous, but really excited, he said. It was fun.He took his job seriously, but was super excited to do it, Tyler Jumper said.As Charlie prepares to enter an upcoming trial treatment, his family said Friday was a day away from appointments and treatments, and a step closer to his dream of one day flying planes himself. "I think coming here to kind of be normal and let him do the things that he wants to do," said Tyler Jumper. "These moments and memories that we made are so important.""I think we definitely appreciate the little things more, the little things that he gets to do," Blanch added. "It makes you excited for him."The Blue Angels, the U.S. Navy's flight demonstration squadron, are scheduled to perform Saturday and Sunday, Aug. 22-23, at the Yellowstone International Air Show. ...read more read less