Laura Hillier was diagnosed with leukemia when she was 13 years old. She had been cancer-free for four years. Unfortunately, the cancer returned. Laura, a gifted and well-liked student at Nelson High School in Ontario, Canada, succumbed to this terrible disease on January 20, 2016.

Later that day, her family shared the following information with their many friends and followers on the Hope for Laura Facebook page: “She fought bravely and all of you would have been so proud of her. Her poise, her courage, her strength and her pure spirit shone through right until the end.” Laura’s family, students, and professors chose to celebrate her life by using colorful markers to create something beautiful on the surface of the casket. The photographs and tale quickly went viral, impacting strangers all over the world…

Laura Hillier died on January 20, 2016, at the age of 18. While waiting for a transplant, she died of acute myeloid leukemia. Laura died in a hospital in Canada, surrounded by family and friends.

Laura was diagnosed with cancer for the first time when she was 13 years old. She had been in remission for four years before relapsing in May of this year.Laura was well-known at Nelson High School in Ontario for her love of music and drama.Her 12th grade yearbook was delivered to her before she died, but her classmates and family members wanted her burial ceremony to seem like a proper “yearbook send-off.”

Laura’s family, friends, neighbors, teachers, classmates, medical staff, and coworkers joined together to turn her casket into a gorgeous yearbook to memorialize her life, contagious enthusiasm, and remarkable talent.Heartfelt notes scribbled in various colors were scribbled all over the casket.

Laura’s stark white casket, which was adorned in colorful inscriptions, has gone viral. The inscriptions are heartfelt, intimate, and moving.You were musical. You were artistic. You were understanding. You were my bestest friend.Life is a song…Sing ’til your heart’s contentVery brave and strong. You will always be a hero.

Laura’s favorite color, purple, was also perfectly woven into her funeral service — from the beautiful flowers to the clothing worn by those in attendance, whether it be a scarf or tie.

Donations in Laura’s name can be made to Coast to Coast, a national charity that works to put an end to childhood cancer.