'She wanted a horse-drawn carriage': Mom of 10-yr-old who died of cancer reveals daughter planned her own funeral
SOUTH WALES, UNITED KINGDOM: Crystal Smith, a 10-year-old girl from South Wales, had organized her own funeral after receiving a dreadful cancer diagnosis, according to her mother. Crystal was only six years old when she was diagnosed with high-risk neuroblastoma.
Crystal had complained of stomach and leg aches for months, but scans and other tests had not revealed anything concrete. After further examinations at Cardiff's University Hospital of Wales Crystal was diagnosed with cancer in 2015, according to WalesOnline. Prior to receiving a bone marrow transplant, Crystal underwent rapid chemotherapy, multiple rounds of radiotherapy, and immunotherapy.
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Crystal was in remission by 2017, but a routine scan in January 2018 revealed that cancer had reappeared. Sabrina Amor, Crystal's mother, was not present with her during the scan as she was pregnant, so her partner went into her place. The 38-year-old said, "That day she was a little bit longer than I thought she would be so I phoned my partner, he said, "it's fine, they are just looking into something."
The scans revealed that cancer had returned, confirming Sabrina's worst fears. She explained that they had to wait three months before Crystal could begin any treatment since the chances of the treatment being effective were higher when the cancer was more advanced. The same year, in December, she succumbed to her illness.
Sabrina said, "She was 10 when she passed away but it was like she was older. She was already planning her own funeral. She wanted to be buried with her nan. She had thought about it all. She wanted a horse-drawn carriage, and I would tell her to hang on, but that is what she was like, she knew what she wanted. She was still fiery and feisty. If you had met her, you knew it, you couldn't forget her."
Crystal's younger brother Kobe was born seven months prior to her death. According to Sabrina, he mentions her frequently and lets his mother know that he is playing with his older sister. Sabrina said, "He will say oh I'm just playing with Crystal. Every day he says 'morning baby girl, good night', he has helped me so much."
Dreams & Wishes, a charity dedicated to making seriously ill children happy, greatly helped Crystal during her therapy. To keep in touch with her friends, she was given a laptop and taken on a day excursion to Downing Street, Lego Land, and Harry Potter Studios. Additionally, the organization made arrangements to fulfill Crystal's request for a horse-drawn carriage for her funeral. After Crystal died, Sabrina and her daughter Georgia completed the Cardiff half marathon and raised more than $2000 for the charity. She intended to run more marathons in the future to raise money for the nonprofit.