Dame Deborah James’ daughter Eloise has designed a limited edition Christmas jumper to raise money for the late journalist’s charity fund.
Eloise, 12, wore a white jumper emblazoned with the words ‘Rebellious Hope’ as part of her family’s festive fundraising campaign.
Deborah launched a ‘Rebelious Hope’ T-shirt earlier this year to raise money for her Bowelbabe Fund, and her family continues to raise funds in her memory.
Charity: Dame Deborah James’ daughter Eloise has designed a limited edition Christmas jumper to raise money for the late journalist’s charity fund
Deborah died on 28 June at the age of 40 at her parents’ home in Woking, Surrey, following a five-year-long battle with stage four bowel cancer. She is survived by her husband Sebastian Bowen and their children Hugo and Eloise, 14.
It will be their family’s first Christmas since Deborah passed away and she admitted she will be ‘missed a lot’ as she shared a long caption on social media.
They shared a picture of Eloise wearing the new jumper on the Bowelbabe Instagram page, along with a series of photos of Deborah wearing festive jumpers.
All profits from the limited edition jumper launched with In The Style will go to the Bowelbabe Fund for Cancer Research UK.
Fundraising: Deborah launched ‘Rebellious Hope’ T-shirts earlier this year to raise money for her BowlBabe Fund, and her family continues to fundraise in her memory.
Deborah’s ‘Rebellious Hope’ T-shirts have already raised more than £1.68million for the fund and her family said they hope the new jumpers can carry on Deborah’s ‘light and magic’.
In a lengthy caption, her family also revealed how much Deborah loves Christmas and said she will be ‘greatly missed’ as they explained how the festive season can be difficult for many people.
They wrote: ‘There’s always ‘rebel hope’: We’re so excited to announce this special, limited edition Christmas jumper launched by InStyle, with 100% of profits going straight to @bowelbabefund.
‘We know Debs would absolutely love them. She enjoyed the magic of Christmas, (for too long!) decorating the tree, in sequined mini dresses or matching Christmas jumpers – celebrating life and making memories.
Family: Deborah (pictured with Eloise) died aged 40 at her parents’ home in Woking, Surrey, on 28 June after a five-year-long battle with stage four bowel cancer.
Difficult times: It will be Deborah’s family’s first Christmas since her passing and they admit she will be ‘missed’ as they share a long caption on social media
‘We hope this jumper can capture a little of her light and magic. He will be greatly missed this year. A lot of people, for whatever reason, find that Christmas can be too much. And let’s face it, it is. There’s a lot of pressure to “make the most of it”.
‘So whatever your Christmas may look like, we’re sending you lots of love. We hope that the message of ‘Rebellious Hope’ can help you move forward – to find light and positivity in moments of darkness, and to hold on to hope and nurture it when you find it.
‘We are constantly blown away by how many of you are supporting the T-shirts and spreading the message – we hope you enjoy wearing them as much as Debs did designing it.
‘We’ve raised over £1.68m for @bowelbabefund through the sale of t-shirts and the collection, which will support causes and projects that Deborah was passionate about (more on this coming soon!).
Celebration: In the caption, her family also revealed how much Deborah (pictured) loved Christmas
Partner: Deborah is survived by husband Sebastian Bowen and their children Hugo, 14, and Eloise
‘Thank you to the amazing @inthestyle team (especially @fr15by) and all for their continued support – you are amazing! Love to Deborah’s family.
Deborah’s mother, Heather James, spoke of spending Christmas without her for the first time since her daughter’s death.
Earlier this month, 65-year-old Heather, also known as Bowell Gran, admitted she would find it ‘difficult’ to spend Christmas with her daughter.
Speaking to The Sun, the grandmother of four said it would be a struggle to look after the decorations Deborah had bought for her children, Hugo and Eloise.
Campaigning: Deborah’s ‘Rebellious Hope’ T-shirts have already raised more than £1.68m for the fund and her family said they hope the new jumpers can carry on Deborah’s ‘light and magic’
Christmas: Her family shared a series of photos of Deborah in festive clothes and standing in front of a Christmas tree
He said it was ’emotional’ to see Deborah’s last wish come true – to see the signs of bowel cancer printed on a pack of Loo Rolls at Tesco. The supermarket started stocking the new packaging in stores last week.
Heather said, ‘Deborah loved Christmas, she loved buying new ornaments for the children, picking out the tree, decorating it and playing Christmas songs.’
‘She also brought home some large Nutcracker ornaments. I know it is going to be very difficult for me to see him this year.
EMOTIONAL: It comes as Deborah’s mum Heather James talks about spending Christmas with her daughter for the first time since her death
Heather also celebrated the news that Tesco started selling packs of toilet paper in its stores highlighting the symptoms of bowel cancer on the packaging.
This was the last mission that Deborah successfully completed before her death in June.
Dame Deborah called on major retailers to include symptoms of the disease on their loo roll packaging weeks before her death in early June.
Seeing the new rolls for the first time last week, her mother said: ‘I was so proud to walk down the aisle to see one of Deborah’s last dreams come true.
Sad: Speaking to The Sun, the grandmother of four said it would be a struggle to see the decorations Deborah bought for her children, Hugo and Eloise
The grandmother of four said she wanted to hug the Loo Roll packets when she first saw them, and joked she would never buy any other toilet paper again.
She said that she didn’t want to open the packs and damage their packaging, and added that it was nice to see the logo of her daughter’s foundation on the pack as well.
Heather applauded her daughter’s lasting legacy, saying she is sure the move will save many lives.
