Deborah was the daughter of Philip and Nancy Collins, of Dartmouth, Massachusetts. A letter from Ellen White to Deborah in 1850, then age 9, and her brother Gilbert, 13, shows the personal interest Ellen White took in their spiritual welfare. Deborah Collins died at age 13 “of canker-rash, after an illness of two and a half days.” 1EGWLM 810.2
See: Obituary: “Deborah L. Collins,” Review, Dec. 23, 1852, p. 128; Ellen G. White, Lt 7, 1849 (Sept.). 1EGWLM 810.3