Family gather to celebrate teen photographer's life

A celebration of life has been held for a teenage photographer who died last month from a rare form of cancer.

Liz Hatton, 17, spent the last year of her life completing a bucket list, which saw her take pictures at London Fashion Week, film premieres and at Windsor Castle, where she was photographed hugging the Princess of Wales.

To honour the Harrogate teen, her family filled a room with photos she had taken and all of her favourite things.

"I don't feel sad when I look at any of them, I just feel so much joy that we had the moment," her mum, Vicky Robayna, said.

Liz was diagnosed with an aggressive desmoplastic small round cell tumour in January and was told she had between six months and three years to live.

Mrs Robayna explained Liz was "determined" not to have a funeral, so the family opted instead for an exhibition of her work at the DoubleTree by Hilton Harrogate Majestic Hotel.

Guest were also able to partake in Liz's favourite snacks, including lemon drizzle cake, salt-and-vinegar Discos and international sweets.

"The last few months of Liz's life were her happiest," Mrs Robayna said.

"She was at her brightest and her best, she had her camera everywhere and every single one of these photos is a memory from that time."

The photos on display included those of her brother Mateo, models from Fashion Week and dancers from the Royal Ballet.

Liz's school friends Daisy White and Alice Jackson attended the celebration and said they had started crying while looking at her work.

"I remember I sent her a message," Alice said.

"I knew she wouldn't see it but I just wanted to make sure she knew how proud everyone was."

Another one of Liz's proudest moments was meeting the Prince and Princess of Wales at an event in October, where she was pictured hugging Kate.

In a statement, the Royal Family said it had been "an honour to have met such a brave and humble young woman".

Going forward, Liz's family want better research into rare forms of cancer.

"We are going to set up a charity for desmoplastic small round cell tumours, the first in the world," Mrs Robayna said.

They have set up a Just Giving page to fundraise in Liz's memory.

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