Dame Deborah James, known as BowelBabe, will live on after she touched the hearts of many with her kindness.
This year, the mum continued to fearlessly campaign to raise awareness about bowel cancer until she sadly died in June. In an astonishing achievement, the broadcaster raised more than £7.5million pounds with her BowelBabe fund.
Dame Deborah has been a beacon of hope for many people and her kindness will not be forgotten. Genevieve Edwards, Chief Executive at Bowel Cancer UK, told HELLO!: "Dame Deborah has been a constant source of inspiration, especially to those affected by bowel cancer.
"The people that followed her on social media, read her best-selling books or listened to her award-winning podcast and those that contacted her directly will never forget the kindness she showed them during a very difficult time in their lives, as well as hers. She was a beacon of light in such dark times."
Harkness Rose Company, who grow the Dame Deborah Rose in her honour, shared with HELLO! a beautiful tribute to the late star’s kindness. They said: "As you know we are the proud growers of the Dame Deborah James rose. We were approached by Deborah’s family a week before Chelsea Flower Show, asking if there was anything we could do. It was a surprise for Deborah at this point and all they said it that they thought she would want something classic and white.
"A rose naming for us is something that takes time, often years, but our team, like a lot of other people, had been following Deborah’s story on social media and we knew time was of the essence. We knew we wanted to help so we ran (literally) round our nursery looking at our unamend roses that were still very early in their life.
"One stood out which was the white, pink rose with a powdery sweet scent. Two days later we were invited down to meet Deborah and her family where we presented the rose to them. Luckily Deborah loved the rose and described the colour as 'ballet slipper pink'.
"We felt so lucky to have been able to meet Deborah at this stage, while it was clear that she was very unwell, she was so full of life and sparkling ideas. Deborah was so determined to squeeze everything out of the time she had to help as many people as she could, to spread the message to as many as she could.
"We spoke about how her work had helped treatments still in development, helped support others living with cancer and how she was inspiring people to live their lives to the fullest whether they had cancer or not.
"The part that was the most heartbreaking and heart-warming all at once was when she told us what having a rose named after her meant to her. Deborah told us that this rose meant that in a way she was living on, blooming every year for her family to nurture.
"A way of still being around and present, Deborah asked us whether we could grow this rose for many years to come so that her daughter could have it in her bouquet when she gets married. How we didn’t all just sob, I do not know but somehow we kept it together.
"In this meeting Deborah expressed how determined she was to make it to Chelsea Flower Show to see her rose launched, even when her health was deteriorating, she was determined to make wonderful memories for her family.
"What struck us the most about our meeting with Deborah is that she was organising, planning and caring about everyone else, even in a time where she knew she didn’t have long. Her thoughts were about her children, her husband, her family, her friends and for everyone living with cancer.
"In fact, she was thinking of people that didn’t have cancer because she wanted everyone to know the symptoms of bowel cancer and to get checked if they were worried.
"A few days later we launched the Dame Deborah James Rose on press day at the Chelsea Flower Show, we were blown away by how many people were seeking us out to have a glimpse at the rose, share a story of a time they met Deborah or even discuss how cancer has touched their lives.
"Many tears were shed but so many laughs were had too, how can you not smile when talking about Dame Deborah. We were so lucky to welcome Dame Deborah and Sebastien to Chelsea one evening after the show had closed, it felt like a magical evening.
"Everyone at the RHS pulled out the stops, there was champagne on arrival, photos with the rose then a private tour of the gardens. We all laughed and chatted about how the designers create beautiful gardens as we sipped champagne.
"We were celebrating life and making a special memory for everyone that was there. We were able to welcome Dame Deborah’s family to Chelsea later in the week which was so special for them to see her rose. Heather made an impromptu speech and we spent hours chatting and learning more about how incredible Deborah was.
"When the news came through that Deborah had sadly passed away, we were gutted. It is hard to put into words because having only met Deborah twice but we were inspired and amazed by her kindness and bravery.
"Dame Deborah has had a lasting impact on all of us at The Harkness Rose Company, barely a day goes by when we don’t talk about her or the impact she has had on the world. I don’t think we are alone in this, the sales of the rose show that so many others feel the same.
"The Dame Deborah James rose has been the best-selling rose we have ever grown, for good reason, because everyone wants a little bit of Deborah growing in their gardens."
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