“Doing the cancer walk with your child is not all roses… it’s hard to stay positive and look at the upside.”
— Craig, Violet’s dad
In November 2015, the life six-year-old Violet knew — a life of school days, playground adventures, and the innocence of childhood — changed forever. What began as months of vague tummy aches and growing pains quickly erupted into a nightmare no family could ever be prepared for. An ultrasound revealed a tumour the size of a fist near her left kidney. The official diagnosis:
Stage 4 neuroblastoma — an aggressive childhood cancer that had already spread through Violet’s body. It was in her skull, jaw, spine, legs, and bone marrow. As Craig later said, “No wonder she felt sick.”
Within weeks, Violet went from running through the backyard to barely being able to walk. The cancer was consuming her tiny body, and her parents, Colleen and Craig, watched helplessly as their sunny little girl faded under the weight of pain and fear. Two weeks after being admitted to Lady Cilento Hospital in Brisbane, the pain in her legs was so severe that she could no longer stand. Doctors immediately began seven rounds of chemotherapy, followed by a nine-hour surgery to remove most of the tumour and her left kidney. The months that followed were filled with radiation therapy, immunotherapy, and long hospital nights that seemed to stretch on forever.
Life became a relentless test of endurance. The family’s world tightened to the walls of the hospital and the rituals of treatment. Craig and Colleen juggled school drop-offs for their other children with sleepless nights at Violet’s bedside. They learned to wake instantly to the sound of Violet crying out from pain or nausea, rushing to soothe her before she could spiral into another wave of discomfort. “It’s like having a newborn again,” Colleen said quietly. “The nappy changes, the sleeplessness, the bad dreams. But this time, you know your child is suffering.”
Their home life shifted into something unrecognizable. Family dinners disappeared. Violet’s appetite had been destroyed by chemotherapy and medication, and she had to be tube-fed. Craig took extended leave from work, while Colleen put her studies aside. Every moment was survival — emotionally, financially, physically. “Life is very different,” Craig said. “We will do anything we need to help our precious daughter get better.”
Through all of this darkness, Violet’s spirit remained fierce. Children with cancer often have an astonishing hunger for life, and Violet was no exception. She learned how to roller-skate. She insisted on having fun whenever she could. She smiled at nurses and joked with the medical staff. After two long years, Violet finally completed treatment. She returned to school, and for a little while, the family felt as though the nightmare might truly be behind them.
But cancer is cruel. Not long after she finished treatment, Violet relapsed.
Over the next few years, Violet endured multiple relapses as her cancer became increasingly aggressive and resistant to every traditional therapy available. Yet her spirit never wavered. She loved music, often coaxing nurses into singing, dancing, and even rapping just to lift her spirits. Her hospital room was frequently transformed into a stage of joy and laughter — even when her body was exhausted.
Colleen spoke often about hope. “The research Children’s Cancer Institute is doing will make a real difference,” she said. “One day, they will bring us a cure. We need to get behind them and support them.” Violet, too, believed in something bigger — a future where children like her would have a fighting chance.
In October 2021, Violet passed away, held tightly by the family that adored her. She was only twelve.
Her final months were unimaginably hard, yet Violet’s light never dimmed. Despite feeling the sickest she had ever been, she used her remaining strength to help others. She handcrafted tiny crocheted pocket elephants — each one made slowly, carefully, lovingly by a girl whose hands shook with pain. She sold them online to raise money for cancer research, determined that no other child would have to suffer the way she did.
Her elephants became symbols of courage. Symbols of generosity. Symbols of a little girl who refused to let cancer steal her purpose, even as it stole her future.
Today, Violet’s legacy lives on in every child whose life will be touched by the research she supported. Her bravery continues to inspire the scientists who work tirelessly toward a cure. Her laughter echoes in the memories of nurses who danced beside her bed. Her determination fuels the mission she believed in so deeply.
Cancer may have taken Violet’s life, but it never took her spirit.
And it never will.
💛 Violet inspires us every day to keep fighting, keep researching, and keep believing in a future where every child survives cancer.