EMILY Dodd lived for just 19 years but, despite the hand life had dealt her, her gritty determination and cheerfulness through adversity will be remembered by all those who knew her, writes Alison Stephenson.

Emily was born on October 9 with two chambers to her heart rather than four and a 'very unique' plumbing system. She had had four major heart operations by the age of ten and radical surgery to change the flow of blood around her body.

In July last year she suffered a stroke and spent 12 weeks in hospital. She died at her home in Peter Tavy on January 5 surrounded by her family and beloved dog Shadow.

On January 17, 450 people filled Tavistock Methodist Church to remember this young lady who just a few weeks earlier had been awarded her BTEC childcare development diploma with distinction from Tavistock College and a special principal's award for persistence and determination. Wheelchair bound and with sight problems from the stroke months earlier, Emily attended the presentation, a moment which will be treasured by her parents David and Anna.

At 18, Emily had been ready to meet the world head on, she had secured a place at Plymouth University and had passed her driving test to drive a special mobility car: 'Emily was incredibly organised and focused,' said Anna Dodd.

'She had originally wanted to work with children but her condition meant she just did not have the physical ability to do that. She accepted that in her own way even though it was frustrating for her and decided to study business and accounting instead.

'She was so looking forward to it, but then she became very poorly. She suffered a bleed to the brain and spent six weeks in intensive care and 12 weeks in total at Derriford. She was determined to be home for her 19th birthday on October 9, Goose Fair day, and came out the day before.

'Our son Nathan was going to Goose Fair and Emily said "can't I go?". After 13 weeks in hospital we were a bit shocked but this was Emily.

'She had to go everywhere in a wheelchair by that time so we got her well wrapped-up and off we went to Goose Fair and then we came home and had a birthday tea.'

Emily's health improved for a while but then she became poorly again: 'It was like her body was giving up,' added Anna. 'I think she lived to see Christmas and the New Year and then she just plummeted. She refused to go into hospital, she just wanted to be at home, with us and her cousins next door and the dog — she adored the dog.

'She ordered everyone's Christmas presents even though she was in pain and her hands were very shaky. She always thought of others.'

Anna said even when Emily was very ill she was still looking to the future and planning an Open University course because she was not well enough to go to uni.

'Emily had this way of re-focusing if she could not do what she wanted,' said Anna. 'You could see it would get her down but she would bounce back and get on with it. She would never rant or get angry.

'What frustrated her a lot was that she could not wear high heels like her friends because her condition made her legs very swollen, but she loved her make-up and nail varnish and at the thanksgiving service all the windows were decorated in her favourite things — even pork scratchings which she liked to feast on at 3am!

'From the very start her outlook on life was very positive which made it much easier for us as parents. She never let things get in her way and even when she needed to go into hospital she would look forward to seeing her friends again. She was always a bit tearful before the operations but afterwards she just got on with it, she was amazing.'

Emily had to spend weeks at a time at Southampton Hospital where she received four operations and other treatment.

At the age of 13 she was also diagnosed with a type of arthritis associated with the heart condition which gave her a lot of leg, knee and hip pain.

One of her joys was helping her parents take members of the Muscular Dystrophy Group in Tavistock away on holiday each year: 'She enjoyed that more than our family holidays, I think,' said David Dodd.

'She helped with the organisation and loved it — it was a great part of her life

'Five of the lads were at the thanksgiving service. We were humbled by so many people coming to the service. When Emily was born we were not expecting her to live beyond childhood but but she kept going. We never thought about her life ending until she got very poorly because she seized life — she looked on most experiences as fun and exciting and was an absolute joy.'

Donations made at the thanksgiving service will go towards 16-year-old Nathan Dodd's volunteering trip to Cambodia in 2015 — which is what his sister would have wanted.