SHE SMILED her way through a host of allergies and refused to let her health complaints bring her down.
Now, thanks to friends at her school, the memory of ‘Little Miss Sunshine’ Molly Giles will be able to live on forever.
The 10-year-old, from Didcot, passed away earlier this year after suffering a huge anaphylactic shock.
Anaphylaxis is an extreme allergic reaction to certain foods, insect stings or drugs, which results in rapid chemical changes in the body, and Molly passed away within hours of going into shock.
Mother Rebecca Leighton, 32, said Molly was severely allergic to nuts and had a spoonful of a curry which unbeknown to them contained cashew paste.
She said: “We knew Molly was allergic but she had never had an attack before that night.
“She only had one spoonful and we reacted as soon as we realised.
“But it all happened so quickly.”
Ms Leighton and Molly’s father Chris Giles, 41, who also have an eight-year-old son, Thomas, said their popular daughter was known and loved by all for her sunny attitude.
Ms Leighton said: “Molly was great. Just full of life and lots of fun.
“She was always happy. She was very popular at school and everyone talks about how they will always remember her wonderful smile.
“She had a few health problems.
“She had very severe allergies, she was asthmatic, and had very bad eczema.
“Sometimes it was so bad it would cover her from head to toe.
“But she never moaned or complained. She just got on with it and kept smiling.”
In testament to Molly’s unshakeable cheerfulness, staff at Northbourne School, Didcot, have raised enough money to dedicate a memor-ial bench to her and plan to launch the Sunshine Cup, an award for children who keep smiling through difficult circumstances.
More than £1,000 has already been raised in Molly’s name, with £400 alone being donated at the funeral, and the school has also been responsible for raising more than £700 for the Eczema Society with a fundraising ‘Sunshine Run’.
Ms Leighton said: “We are overwhelmed by it all.
“I can’t describe how it feels to think that Molly will be remembered in this way.
“To think she will live on as an inspiration to other children makes us feel very proud and it offers us some small comfort.”
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