Teen facing rare cancer records song to raise money for charity
Abi Jacobs, 13, from Borehamwood, has recorded a cover of her favourite song to raise £50,000 for the charities who have helped her.
A teenager who is undergoing chemotherapy for a rare form of cancer has released a cover of her favourite song – to raise money for the charities who have supported her.
Abi Jacobs, 13, from Borehamwood, was diagnosed in December with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, a rare type of cancer which affects white blood cells.
Brave Abi is having to undergo intensive chemotherapy to treat the illness, but didn’t let that stop her from releasing a cover of Jealous by Labrinth for charity.
The teen has set herself a demanding target of £50,000 to raise for the organisations that have supported her, such as Camp Simcha and Chai Cancer Care. You can donate here.
“She first got ill in December last year,” said her dad, Adam. “Since then they’ve been doing various tests and treatments, and chemotherapy.
“She lost her hair five weeks after starting treatment. It’s been quite tough, she’s had nausea, she had inflammation on one side of her brain, she’s had severe headaches.
“But she’s coped incredibly well, she’s been a real inspiration to everybody, just through her focus and the way she’s tackled it.”
When the most recent round of chemo is finished, aspiring singer Abi will then have to move onto a two-year phase of ‘maintenance’ chemo.
Charities and communal groups have rallied around to help the Jacobs.
“We’ve had so much support from the Jewish community and charities, so we wanted to raise money to give back to them,” he said.
Speaking before the cover, Abi added: “Without these charities, I don’t know what I would do, I’m really grateful.”
Among the support was Camp Simcha paying for Uber rides to the hospital, Chai Cancer Care providing advice, and members of the family’s synagogue making sure they were never without a cooked meal.
With the help of family friend Dean Greenfield, Abi recorded the cover six days ago, and has so far raised nearly £6,000.
“We’ve had so many friends and family giving, but we’ve had anonymous donations, of up to £100, which is just amazing,” said Adam.
“It just seems to have touched people and they just want to help.”
To see Abi’s cover of Jealous, or to donate, visit https://gofund.me/d6fc9917.
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
