One of our members who tragically lost his one-year-old daughter to an exceptionally rare cancer has turned her laughter, artwork and memory into a charity song celebrating what he calls her “big little life”.
Big Little Life (Cece’s Song) was written by Ben Ziff, a member of South Hampstead Synagogue, in memory of his daughter Celine, who died last year, aged one year and 19 days after being diagnosed with an extrarenal rhabdoid tumour, a highly aggressive childhood cancer that affects one in 12 million children.
The song, which raises money for Noah’s Ark Children’s Hospice, features recordings of Celine’s laugh and is accompanied by artwork she helped create alongside her twin brother Jesse and older sister Luna.
For Ben and his wife, Sophia, the project was born out of a determination to ensure their daughter’s legacy would be defined by joy rather than loss.
“This is not a sad song, although it comes from a very sad story,” said Ben.
“There was so much joy in Celine’s life. She had a huge personality, she demanded attention and she made an enormous impact on all of us.
“As a family we wanted to create something that captures who she really was.
“My only endeavour was not to become a victim of the grief. I wanted to tell Celine’s story and create something positive that celebrates her life and forms part of her legacy.
“I’m reaching the point where I feel so lucky and happy to have known her,” added Ben.
A short video of the children making the artwork plays when the song is streamed on Spotify.
Ben, who plays drums as a hobby but had never written a song before, approached Bertie in September 2025 with the idea of creating a song in Celine’s memory.
Together with his wife Sophia, Celine’s mum, he wanted to create a series of legacy projects that would celebrate their daughter’s personality, happiness and the impact she had on everyone around her.
Bertie, a singer-songwriter whose music has attracted hundreds of thousands of listens across platforms including Spotify and iTunes, had experienced his own loss after his mother Yvonne died from leukaemia in April 2024.
He had previously written a song called Kin about his mother and he and Ben began writing together just weeks after Celine’s death and spent six months creating Big Little Life (Cece’s Song).
Bertie said: “When someone passes away people often say, ‘If there is anything I can do, let me know.’ When Ben asked me to write a song about Celine, I initially didn’t know whether I could do it.
“Working on this became a second process of grief after losing my mum. It was incredibly uplifting, and there were a lot of parallels between our experiences.
“From the beginning, we knew we didn’t want this to be a sad song. It needed to feel true to Celine and do something meaningful for her. I’m very proud of what we’ve created.”
The song was produced by Ru Lemer, who has worked with artists including Tom Grennan, Foals and Nile Rodgers.
It was mastered at London’s famous Air Studios by Grammy-winning mastering engineer John Webber, who has worked on five UK number ones and with artists such as Olivia Dean, David Bowie, Elton John and Duran Duran.
Philip Roethenbaugh, Noah’s Ark Children’s Hospice’s Director of Fundraising & Communications, said: “We’re incredibly grateful to Ben for choosing to support Noah’s Ark Children’s Hospice in such a heartfelt way. This beautiful tribute to Celine will not only honour her memory but also help us continue providing vital care and support to other children and families when they need it most. We can’t thank him enough for his generosity.”
Ben said Big Little Life (Cece’s Song) is the first of several legacy projects he hopes to create in Celine’s memory.
He added: “She was only with our family for one year and 19 days, but the happiness she brought and the impact she had were enormous.
“She had a little life, but it was a big little life.”
Big Little Life (Cece’s Song) is now available to download through Apple Music and streaming platforms including Spotify and YouTube Music.
Images below: CeCe Ziff and Bertie & Ben with the painting
