Kirsty Howard was born with her heart back-to-front, leading doctors to predict that she would not survive beyond the age of four.
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Lynne and Steve Howard were told she would not live past her fourth birthday but watched as she grew into womanhood.
She met Beckham again as she paid the Golden Jubilee baton to the Queen in the opening ceremony for that Manchester Commonwealth Games per year later.
The youngster is the only person in the United Kingdom and only the second in the worls to be diagnosed with the condition.
She sadly succumbed to her illness in the early hours of this morning. Heaven has gained a true angel xx’.
Karen Sutcliffe said: “So sad to hear Kirsty Howard has died”.
There’s no other real way of explaining this courageous, funny, inspirational young woman, and the staggering achievements of her life. “RIP thinking of all her friends and family during this hard time x”.
Launched by children’s hospice Francis House, the page has been set up with the aim of continuing the incredible work the 20-year-old achieved in the years and months before her untimely death.
Her Kirsty Club appeal, to ensure the hospital could continue to care for terminally-ill children, raised enough money for a new wing.
In a statement, Francis House hospice said: “Our deepest condolences go to her family”.
When Kirsty was given an Outstanding Achievement award from the Variety Club in September 2014 to celebrate her extraordinary fundraising achievements, everyone from high profile celebrities to Kirsty’s own doctor led calls for her to be given the OBE.
The courageous young woman captured the hearts of the nation and was awarded the Child of Courage Award at the Daily Mirror Pride of Britain Awards in 2002. And in 2004, the young fundraiser won the Helen Rollason Award for courage at the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Awards.
Over the course of her life, Kirsty also met with Prime Minister David Cameron and his wife Samantha, Prince Charles, and former Prime Minister Tony Blair and his wife, Cherie.
Howard was born with the rare, inoperable condition which resulted in the misplacement of her internal organs, and required extensive treatment and a constant oxygen supply to be given to her.
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She was initially given only six weeks to live, but defied the odds to reach the age of 20.
