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Mayor honors Banks Mathis, proclaims July AFM Awareness Month in Jonesboro
Summary
Mayor Harold Copenhaver proclaimed July 2026 as Acute Flaccid Myelitis (AFM) Awareness Month in Jonesboro and presented an honor to Banks Mathis, one of a small number of children diagnosed with AFM. The mayor highlighted Mathis’s treatments and called for community education and support.
Mayor Harold Copenhaver opened the July 21 Jonesboro City Council meeting by proclaiming July 2026 as Acute Flaccid Myelitis (AFM) Awareness Month and honoring Banks Mathis for his advocacy and resilience. Copenhaver noted Mathis had received care at Le Bonheur and Shriners Hospital and called the child “a strong young man” who helps raise awareness of AFM in the community.
“Banks’s extraordinary courage, resilience and unwavering determination has transformed personal challenges into a powerful source of hope,” Mayor Copenhaver said while presenting the proclamation and inviting Mathis and his family forward. The mayor urged residents, educators and health-care professionals to increase recognition and support for affected individuals and their families. The presentation included a brief commendation from the chief and a city-issued proclamation.
