IN her short life Ivy Steel touched tens of thousands of people.
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The brave 10-year-old died on Saturday surrounded by her treasured family.
Ivy was diagnosed with leukemia at two-and-half-years-old.
Her father Craig Steel said the Facebook page Ivy's Army, which had about 30,000 followers and was set up by her mother Jenna Steel, showed how special she was to so many people.
"She touched so many people with her way of handling it all," he said.
He said Ivy was cheeky and had a witty sense of humour and she was often happiest when she was with her younger brother Van.
"She was always at her happiest to hear what her brother Van had been up to," he said.
"They were very close. Van was a bone marrow donor to Ivy. It was was a pretty big thing for a sibling to do, that basically saved her life for nearly two years."
In 2016 the community helped raise more than $400,000 for cancer treatment in America.
Mr Steel said the response at the time had been overwhelming with children emptying their piggy banks to raise money for the treatment.
"I can't thank everyone enough for their support over Ivy's journey," he said.
He said the messages from family, friends and the wider community had brought a lot of comfort.
"It took me a long time to get my head around why would this happen to such a fun loving kid let alone my own child," he said.
"It wasn't till a good friend said to me it happened to Ivy for a reason and the reason was she could teach the world we live in today about the goodness in people. That's what Ivy was.
"She could teach people how to live."
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