The 11 year old, who played the young Nala in hit musical The Lion King, failed to find a donor in her long battle with acute myeloid leukaemia and passed away on Monday (01Nov10).
Rihanna, 50 Cent and Alicia Keys all joined the little girl’s plight to urge Americans to “get swabbed” and donate much needed bone marrow – and now her mourning mother has pledged to carry on her daughter’s legacy.
In a statement, she says, “Shannon’s strength and her happy, positive spirit will live on in our hearts and minds each day. Shannon’s dream was to perform on stage, and that she did.
“We are grateful for the ongoing support from her Lion King family and the Broadway community. Shannon wanted to recruit people everywhere to ‘get swabbed’ and help save the lives of those in need of a bone marrow transplant.
“In her memory, our family and friends will work tirelessly to carry out her wish through MatchShannon.com. It is our hope that Shannon’s legacy will continue to inspire other brave children battling leukaemia. We are grateful for the outpouring of love and prayers.”
50 Cent has ‘re-Tweeted’ the message on his Twitter.com page, and adds, “RIP Shannon. Make sure to get swabbed.”
