Camila Pereira
•6/10/2026
COLLIER COUNTY, Fla. (WINK)—A 14-year-old girl who touched countless lives with her bright spirit and beautiful voice has lost her battle to stage four liver cancer.
Sofia Palm died Saturday. Her parents, Jearim and Marcus Palm, are now sharing memories of their daughter and the mark she left behind.
"She loved to sing. She had the most beautiful voice. She loved art. If you get to look at her room, you'll see all her paintings," Jearim and Marcus Palm said.
"She was just always happy, always smiling, very goofy and silly, didn't care what others thought about her," they said.
Sofia's fourth and fifth-grade teachers, Anne Fleming and Kelly Runyon, remembered the impact she had on everyone around her.
"Every time she entered a space. It was like a light in the room, and everyone could feel it," Fleming and Runyon said.
"She made me a better person," they said.
Tom Speigal and Tatum Howard, Sofia's physical education and chorus teacher at Oakridge Middle School, described her as accepting and loving to everyone.
"She was not too cool for anybody; she was just loving and accepting to everyone," Speigal and Howard said.
Sofia's siblings, Mia and Drake Palm, spoke about what kind of sister she was.
"She was the great big sister, the best big sister," Mia and Drake Palm said.
In her final days at the hospital, Sofia's father asked if there was anything he could do for her.
"When we were in the hospital, I said, 'Is there anything Daddy can do for you, honey, anything at all?' She said, 'Can you please get me out of here?' She goes, 'I don't want to be here anymore,'" Jearim and Marcus Palm said.
Now, everyone she touched and who supported her during her fight are remembering her and sharing what she meant to them.
Sofia's friends, Alexis Prater and Luciana Pinto, shared their love and gratitude for the time they had together.
"I love you so much. I'm very grateful for the time we have together," Prater and Pinto said.
"You always were one of my closest friends, and I miss you," they said.
Her chorus teachers said they will always remember her presence in their classroom.
"We will always have a seat saved for her in our choir class," Speigal and Howard said.
Sofia's parents expressed their enduring love for their daughter.
"We love her, and we miss her and can't wait to see her again," Jearim and Marcus Palm said.
