Beautiful, smart, caring, funny, creative
When you describe a person as beautiful, funny, smart, and kind-hearted, it makes you want to know them. Add clumsy, quirky, creative, and spontaneous, and it makes you smile and know they are genuine. That was Hannah, a natural social butterfly; a person people liked to be around for numerous reasons.
A multi-interest person, Hannah loved music, crafting, growing succulent plants, making soaps, and time with her family. She expressed herself through her creative clothing and her ever-changing hair color, and went with the flow.
While Hannah was the life of the party, she was also selfless and a wonderful daughter, sister, mother, aunt, and friend. Hannah and her sister Brittany were best friends. You never saw one without the other. They went to Disney World together and enjoyed their favorite holiday, Halloween, every year. They always went to Tomb of the Risen Dead together-a haunted house experience.
Another special event was fourth of July at the beach where Hannah got engaged to Trey McDaniel. They later married and had a son, Orean. Hannah was a great mom and did everything with Orean. Now 4, he was 18 months old when Hannah passed away. A year later, he lost his father, Trey, also from a drug overdose.
Hannah graduated summa cum laude from high school and became a cosmetologist after graduating from Paul Mitchell Hair and Beauty School. Not one to be concerned with mainstream ideas, she was often barefoot while cutting hair. She was authentic with her clients, interested in their lives, and ready to listen and give advice if asked. One client, a teenage boy, was bullied for how he dressed. She shared with him that it was OK to be different, she was, and she dressed how she wanted. Her mom, Cyndi, said, “She was always trying to make others happy and comfortable with themselves.”
When Hannah was in active addiction, she wasn’t her normal bubbly self. She lost motivation and seemed depressed, which the family attributed to her being a new mom. They didn’t suspect she had a substance use disorder; she hid it from them until the day she passed.
The impact on Hannah’s family has been profound. “Everything has changed: lifestyles, careers, relationships, marriages, and mental health,” Cyndi stated. The family also has more compassion and understanding toward those with addiction, seeing them now as people with an illness. Hannah’s laughter, smiles, hugs, voice, and love for her family are missed, living now in memories.
Hannah’s mother, Cyndi Peal, provided the information for this narrative.
October 7, 1996-March 31, 2021-Age 24
Portrait Artist: Theresa Clower
Narrative Writer: Barbara Francois
