Sarai's Story

The light behind our name

Doyinsola “Sarai” Segilola Talabi was a beloved daughter, sister, friend and so much more. Born on 12 November 2007, Sarai was just 17 when she passed away on 21 February 2025 after a short battle with Renal Medullary Carcinoma (RMC).

But Sarai’s story is about far more than the illness she faced.

Sarai was kind, funny, generous and thoughtful. She had a warmth that drew people in and a natural instinct to look after others. If someone felt left out, she made them feel welcome. Friends still talk about her infectious laugh. Teachers remember a young woman with a strong sense of who she was.

To many, she was Chef Segicooks. Food was how she expressed her creativity and her love: cooking for family, bringing treats into school, or finding any excuse to bring people together around a table.

She was studying History, Religious Studies and Media at Chislehurst School for Girls, and she had so much life still ahead of her.

Her faith mattered deeply to her. She stood by her values, cared fiercely about others, and met life with a quiet but determined spirit.

Four Months.

• November 2024: At 16, just before her 17th birthday, Sarai developed severe anaemia and was losing blood.

• December 2024: Doctors found a mass on her kidney. On Christmas Eve, she had major surgery to remove it.

• January 2025: We were given a diagnosis we'd never heard of: Renal Medullary Carcinoma, a rare and aggressive cancer strongly linked to sickle cell trait. However, he surgery seemed to have worked. the doctor's said they were able to remove all of the cancer.

• February 2025: The came back fast. After hospital stays, more than 25 transfusions and immunotherapy, on the 21st February 2025, Sarai passed away peacefully surrounded by her family. She was 17 years old.

Less than four months from first symptoms to goodbye.

Through all of it, she stayed hopeful and brave, and she was still more worried about the people around her than about herself. That was Sarai.

More than a diagnosis

We never want RMC to become the defining story of Sarai's life.

The messages from people who knew her say it best. Again and again they describe her kindness, her humour, her faith and her generosity. One teacher remembered watching her grow from a seven-year-old Brownie into a young woman who was always helping others and rising to every challenge.

That's the Sarai we want the world to know.

Her light continues

Losing Sarai introduced us to a disease we'd never heard of, despite its link to sickle cell trait. No family should face that in the dark.

Out of that loss came a determination to do something. Sarai's Light Foundation was created so her story could become a light for others. We're working to:

    •    Raise awareness of RMC and its connection to sickle cell trait

    •    Support research and education into better diagnosis and treatment

    •    Stand beside families affected by this devastating disease

Every person who learns about RMC because of Sarai, every family that feels a little less alone, and every step towards better treatment carries her light forward.

The Foundation exists because of the life she lived, the people she touched and the love she left behind.

Remember Sarai

We have kept Sarai’s online tribute as a place for her family, friends and everyone whose life she touched to remember her, share memories and celebrate her life.

Visit Sarai’s Tribute →

“I am leaving you with a gift – peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.”
John 14:27