Hundreds of people gathered in Vicksburg Auditorium Saturday to celebrate the life of Afton Wallace, and during the funeral the crowd was played a video featuring 3-year-old Afton narrating “Gwendolyn the Miracle Hen,” by Nancy Sherman, a favorite book of the Wallace family.

Afton, who graduated from Warren Central on May 21, died in her home May 24 after a yearlong battle with cancer.

The story of “Gwendolyn the Miracle Hen” is about a hen who lays colorful eggs in an attempt to help raise money to pay the farmer’s rent.

Just like Gwendolyn, Afton was always giving of herself, a message echoed throughout the funeral service.

Sheri Peterson Wallace, her mother, with the help of a list of 10 songs, painted a picture of Afton from birth until her death.

Afton also knew what it meant to give of herself, working on multiple service projects, even while battling cancer.

“Most important, she gave herself,” Sheri said. “She would go from room to room and find a way to cheer up the other patients. She would play games with them, she would sings songs with them, and in her mind, it was never service, it was love. It was the love of the Heavenly Father that she wanted to emulate.”

Afton truly epitomized the idea of smile through anything, Sheri said.

“This year was a rough year for us,” Sheri said. “Believe it or not, even with this year, Afton loved every moment of her life. There were moments in the hospital where she was literally doubled over in pain. She would spend hours throwing up into a bucket and out of nowhere she would say something silly or make a joke, and usually it was about Rob.”

Afton could not be held down, Sheri said, after playing “Defying Gravity” from the musical “Wicked.”

“She reached into the depths of her inner-most strength in ways that as a mother, you would never want to have to see your child do,” Sheri said. “A couple of days before she passed, we were laying in bed, she was laying in my arms, she was in excruciating pain, and I said, ‘I wish just momentarily I could bundle up some of this pain and carry it for you,’ and in true Afton humor, she said, ‘Oh, I love you, but that could never happen. You couldn’t have made it.’”

Sheri reminded everyone of how Afton shocked medical professionals.

“They would say, ‘How is she doing this? Tell us what the secret is,’” Sheri said. “‘She shouldn’t be walking. She’s missing a pelvic bone and half of her left leg is paralyzed. She shouldn’t be in a pool swimming. In fact, she shouldn’t even be alive,’ they said.”

Sheri said Afton had no idea what sort of impact she made.

“Afton had no idea the courage, the strength, the depth, the spirit and the inspiration she offered to other people,” Sheri said. “What you saw is what you got. She did not put on pretenses for anyone.

On the day she died, Afton was told she had 24 to 48 hours to live, Sheri said. She had been diagnosed with cancer May 22, 2014.

“They said they’d never seen anyone with that much cancer in their body,” Sheri said. “And yet, she added 365 days to that prognosis, and she did it with a smile on her face, even with excruciating pain.”

Sheri said from the time Afton was first diagnosed, she and her husband Robert told Afton it was up to her to make decisions about her cancer.

“But I remember getting on my knees after she went to bed and pleading with the Lord, ‘Please make your will and my will the same,’” Sheri said. “Please, please let them be the same.”

Sheri said a few weeks ago, a line came to her from “Les Misérables” — “I give her to your keeping” — and she realized her time had come.

“I could no longer say, ‘Thy way and my way be the same,’” Sherri said. “I had to say, ‘Thy will be done. I trust in thee. I accept whatever takes place.’”

As Afton’s father, Robert, gave his speech, he explained how after viewing Friday, he decided to change his speech. He decided to first address the class of 2015.

Robert gave to the class a series of lessons, the first being obedience matters.

“The small and simple things matter,” he said. “When we obey the Lord, he blesses us. Afton was obedient in her commandments, and we watched time after time when she was blessed. Our family has been blessed, and this community has been blessed because of her obedience and her willingness to obey the voice of the Lord.”

Robert’s second lesson was that life is eternal, and with that, families.

“We need to do all we can to make the families we have here on Earth match the family we have in Heaven,” he said. “We are the children of our Father in Heaven, and he loves us. I testify too that the thing that has made this past year and Afton’s passing even possible to bear through, is because of our family.”

The final lesson Robert had was that small things matter.

“There is the story of the man walking on the ocean, and a high tide had come in and thousands and thousands of starfish had been washed ashore,” he said. “This man was picking them up, one by one, and throwing them back into the ocean. Someone saw him and said, ‘You’ll never be able to throw all of them back; you’ll never save all of them,’ and he turned to this person and said, ‘But I can save this one,’ and he threw it back in.”

Robert said every person and every small thing matters to the Lord, and then he expressed his gratitude to everyone who was a part of Afton’s life.

“We will never be able to thank you enough,” he said. “We cannot thank you enough for how you have prayed for us, watched over us and cared for us. I testify to you that the miracles that have happened to us are because of your prayers and your faith, and we thank you, deeply.”

Finally, Robert shared part of a letter he wrote to Afton at 5 a.m., after a sleepless night, the day after finding out the cancer would not be going away.

“All I can give you is my absolute assurance that there is a God who does know the end from the beginning,” he said. “I know that his son died so that we might live again. I know that all of the tears and the fears and the pain that you are experiencing now will be made into joy and rejoicing. I know that he understands what you are going through. I know that our Father in Heaven loves you, knows you and is mindful of you, and knows the suffering that you are experiencing. Mostly I know that you have been sealed to your family for eternity through the power of the priesthood.”

After the service, Kaylynne Wallace, Afton’s sister and best friend, said she will miss her sister.

“She was my best friend,” she said. “She was my best friend when I was born, 17 years ago. She was my best friend, even when I had to look at her in her casket, and she’ll be my best friend even as I continue moving on through life and I don’t get to talk to her physically.”

Kaylynne said Afton told their mother she didn’t know what she was going to do without Kaylynne by her side.

“I think that was wrong,” Kaylynne said. “I don’t know what I’m going to do without Afton by my side. She has always, always been there for me, and now I’m always, always going to be here to preserve her memory.”