Brazilian influencer Maria Sofia Valim has died aged 19 after undergoing an emergency liver transplant.
The social media star’s father Vitor Valim, who is the mayor of the municipality of state Caucaia in Ceará in the north east of Brazil, shared the news with his daughter’s followers on Saturday after her liver transplant last Tuesday.
The statement in Brazilian translates as: “It is with the deepest pain and sadness that I inform everyone of the passing of my beloved daughter Sofia. Unfortunately, her body did not survive. I thank everyone for the prayers and affection dedicated to me and my family in this moment of extreme suffering.”
Vitor also added to her followers: “I would like to ask for everyone’s understanding at this time of so much pain. Wake and burial ceremonies will be limited to family only.”
Sofia’s mother Gaída Dias also shared a tribute to her daughter, which translates as: “You always being light! Every day of my life, I will look up to the sky, to see it shining and interceding for us.”
She added: “Sofia taught and left us with multiple assignments. One of them is to support the cause of organ donation. A single donor can save some lives. Having had this chance was an exciting and very special moment in our family.”
The social media star had around 100,000 followers on Instagram and was an aspiring lawyer as well as an influencer. She documented her life on line, sharing posts about travel, exercising, her skincare routine and shopping hauls.
Sofia was also a Taylor Swift fan and in one of her recent posts in November, she was seen enjoying a Taylor concert in Brazil. Her father had previously posted on social media on 5 December to share news of her liver transplant operation.
He wrote: “After following the legal procedures and joining the liver transplant queue, Sofia was able to find a donor due to the urgency of her case.
“This morning a compatible donor was found and the surgery was carried out successfully. However, the next 48 hours will still be observation so that we can know if Sofia’s body will accept the new organ.”
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