Leah Xuereb
A new statue of the Risen Christ was inaugurated at the church of the Franciscan Friars (Ta’ Ġieżu) in Għajnsielem in memory of Leah Xuereb, the bubbly six-year-old girl who stole the hearts of the Maltese nation as she fought cancer. The statue, by Paul Aquilina, was donated to the friars by the Xuereb and Vella families to commemorate Leah, who succumbed to the disease at her home in Għajnsielem in 2015. The statue was blessed by Fr Guardian Joe Caruana on Easter Sunday during the blessing of figolli on the church parvis. Leah’s father, Jonathan (right), is seen here carrying the new statue before it was blessed.