Livvy Butler

Olivia is now 15 years old. At age 11 I, her Mum , was diagnosed with breast cancer at the same time as her Dad and I separated. Olivia dealt with this in a very grown up way, more than I could have ever hoped of from a child of 11. She was very supportive of me, dealing with it by talking to friends and never showing that she was scared or worried. Similarly she supported both her Dad and myself when we split up, trying to remain impartial. Unfortunately these events did take a toll on Olivia and up until 9 months ago she was struggling with school, any upset meaning she stayed at home and her grades suffered. But when she went back to school in September 2010 she decided it was time for things to change, has barely missed a day's school, only due to illness and her grades have improved greatly and she achieved an award due to this. She has dealt with so much in her young life and has turned her life around. I feel she would be an inspiration to any young person who has had to deal with similar problems and shows what can be achieved when you put your mind to it. She always seems to have been in the shadow of a sibling and others around her and would be so proud to shine and be involved in an amazing event like this.