Kim D'Souza

It is with the heaviest heart that we write to let you all know that one of our beloved Arbonne consultants, Kim D'Souza has passed away at the age of 50.

 

Many of you will remember the lovely Kim D’Souza and some of you will know that she was fighting multiple myeloma for about 7 years. Kim was sponsored by Fiona McCall and they were good friends for over 14 years. Kim joined Fiona on the 30-day programme - an attempt by her to prolong her initial 10-year life expectancy following her diagnosis. She had such remarkable results (in terms of her white blood cell count) that her oncologist asked her what she was doing and that was when Kim realised the power of Arbonne’s nutrition and (following a fabulous DA presented by Katrina Andrew), she jumped into the business.

 

Her positivity, her vibrancy and her lust for life totally inspired me, especially in her uncertain circumstances. Many of you will have experienced her incredible generosity - whether with her time, her attention or her uplifting and encouraging words - she absolutely embodied all that our 'Ohana and Inspiration Nations team stands for.

 

Sadly, due to Covid, she has had to keep a very low profile over the last couple of years, unable to mix with others as her immunity was extremely compromised. She has been in and out of hospital for short and long stays as her cancer really started to take hold. The cocktail of drugs that she’d been taking daily for many years no longer could control her pain, as her cancerous blood was weakening her bones, causing holes and breakages. Her last 2 months of life were spent in hospital and when she was moved to the ICU, she could no longer have visitors. Still, during what must have been an incredibly lonely and sad time, her beautiful, uplifting spirit shone through in her texts and voice messages.

 

Kim was a single mum to two beautiful girls, Vali (16) and Giselle (15) who now face life without their adored mum.Thankfully, Vali and Giselle were allowed in to the ICU 2 days before Kim died, so they had a chance to say their goodbyes. I can’t begin to imagine the heartbreak of that visit.

 

She’d also had the opportunity to see other family members the day before she died and during that visit, Kim commented on a bird persistently fluttering around her hospital window; she told them “That’s my dad. He’s waiting for me”. Clearly she knew what was ahead and she was facing it calmly. That story has brought us some comfort and I hope it does you too.

 

I know many of you were very fond of Kim, and this post will have really saddened you. In her prime Arbonne years, Kim was one of the greatest cheerleaders in ‘Ohana (and Inspiration Nations) and in those moments over the last couple of days when we've felt bereft and helpless, this notion keeps springing to mind. Let’s let her legacy live on among us by adopting her cheerleading approach, offering freely words of encouragement and positivity to all those we encounter.

 

This go fund me page has been set up by her Arbonne family in honour of Kim for the benefit of her two young daughters.