Car accident claims life of alum one week after graduation

By Jonathan McFadden

mcfaddenj@mytjnow.com

Hannah Floyd, left, worked as a research assistant for Heater Evans-Anderson, associate professor of biology. Photo courtesy of Heather Evans-AndersonHannah Floyd loved drinking coffee and eating.

She enjoyed learning about foreign cultures and desired to teach English in China.

She was a dedicated student who read her molecular biology textbook for fun before the semester even started.

She wasn’t a homebody, preferring to get out of the house and socialize; she volunteered at the Chester Animal Shelter.

The pugs were her favorite.

Hannah, 24, died on Sunday, Dec. 26, 2010, when her car slid off the right side of northbound Interstate 85 and hit a power pole during inclement weather.

Just a week before, she graduated Winthrop with honors and received both a Bachelor of Science in biology and Bachelor of Arts in psychology.

Originally from Chester, S.C., Hannah lived with her best friend, senior business major Katlyn Oglesby, for two and a half years. In that time, Hannah and Oglesby formed a strong friendship devoid of arguments and filled with fun, laughter and understanding.

“She was the most nonjudgmental person I’ve ever met,” Oglesby said. “If you’re gay, she didn’t care; if you’re an atheist, she didn’t care; if you’re really religious, she didn’t care. She just meshed really well with everybody.” 

Academic scholar

Hannah attended and graduated from the South Carolina Governor’s School for Science and Mathematics and received a full ride to Winthrop University.

“Hannah was a very vibrant and talented young woman who had a bright future,” said Joe Prus, department chair of the psychology department. “She was a pleasure to teach and was no doubt capable of going on to a top-notch graduate program.”

Merry Sleigh, associate professor of psychology, said one of Hannah’s most obvious qualities was her intelligence. 

Sleigh recalled a time when she and Hannah were discussing a topic on which Hannah had more expertise than she did.

“I was struck by the way she was able to convey her superior knowledge with such gentle humility and respect,” Sleigh said.

One professor Hannah was particularly close to was Dr. Heather Evans-Anderson, an assistant professor of biology who taught Hannah anatomy.

“She was my favorite in so many ways,” Evans-Anderson said.

Hannah also acted as Evans-Anderson’s research assistant.

“She was going to go to graduate school to study neuroscience after she went to a foreign country for a while to teach English,” Evans-Anderson said. “She was quite fond of South America and the Middle East.”

Evans-Anderson said she and others from her lab planned to eat at Charanda, one of Hannah’s favorite restaurants, in honor of her memory.

Lots of laughs

Coupled with her academic accolades, Hannah also had a sense of humor.  

Some days, Hannah would run into her roommate’s room while she was sleeping and pretend as if the fire alarm went off. Other times, Oglesby scared Hannah while she was in the shower.

Despite the fun and games, some boundaries still existed. No one dared to speak before Hannah got her morning cup o’ Joe.

“She did not function without coffee,” Oglesby said, “so it was like an agreement; before she had her coffee, we would be silent.”

Of the seven roommates Oglesby’s had, she said Hannah was the best.

Changes

Things have changed for Oglesby, now without her roommate and best friend. Though she said she’s experienced the deaths of friends before, Hannah’s was different.

“I really don’t have any bad memories of Hannah,” Oglesby said. “Pretty much everything was a good memory.”

It was the vivid memories that led Oglesby to move out of her and Hannah’s apartment and to Charlotte with another friend.

“We woke up to each other every day; we were best friends,” Oglesby said.

Susan Clark remembers Hannah as random, fun, dependable, complex and simple all rolled up into one.

“She’s not someone who can fit into a category,” said Clark, sophomore broadcast major. “She was so random and so different than anybody, honestly, that I’ve ever met.”

Hannah didn’t have any enemies, Clark said. In fact, there really wasn’t anyone Hannah didn’t like or anyone who didn’t like her.

“She was just so happy to meet new people,” Clark said.

Though she went through tough times in her life, Hannah wasn’t the kind of person to wear her troubles on her sleeves, Clark said.

Because Hannah always had a smile on her face, Clark said other people thought she was happy all the time. In fact, her smile was infectious.

“She would make other people happy,” Clark said.

Double trouble

When Clark first met Hannah, she didn’t learn about the double major alone - instead, she realized Hannah came with another, her roommate Oglesby.

“I kept hearing about this pair, Katie and Hannah, Katie and Hannah, and I was like, ‘Who are these people?’” Clark said.

When Clark began dating her current boyfriend, junior business administration major Majid Al Asfoor, who was already friends with both Oglesby and Hannah, she realized why their names were synonymous.

“They really are like a pair and they’re double trouble every time you see them,” Clark said.

Clark recalled a time when Hannah and Oglesby stole Al Asfoor’s chair from his yard. In retaliation, Clark and Al Asfoor stole Hannah’s hammock and put it in Al Asfoor’s backyard.

“For a long time they didn’t find it,” Clark said. “And one day they were telling us a story about how the hammock randomly appeared in their backyard and, of course, our face said it all.”

So, the war began. Hannah and Oglesby returned and took Al Asfoor’s painting, toothbrush and computer. Hannah even plastered the painting in her window so Al Asfoor, who lived in the same neighborhood, could see it.

“We had these wars all the time of just stealing each other’s stuff,” Clark said.

Apart from the fun and games, Hannah enjoyed intelligent coversations, too. Clark recalled one incident when, while staying with Hannah and Oglesby overnight, she overheard Hannah having a random biological debate with a guy she had met.

“They were talking about cells, life and premature life - just randomness and biology weird stuff, and I was so lost,” Clark said. “And I was like, ‘Hannah, you would, on a Saturday night, have some random biology debate.’”

Terrible news

Clark and Al Asfoor were at Clark’s grandmother’s house when Oglesby called with the bad news.

Hannah had been in an accident. Al Asfoor received the news first.

“I just heard him say, ‘Oh my God, is she okay?’” Clark said. “I never thought he would have said that she died.”

Clark and Al Asfoor packed up all their stuff and returned to Rock Hill that same day.

Adjusting

Oglesby said Hannah’s death hasn’t quite hit her just yet. Normally around winter break, she would go home to be with family and Hannah would do the same. Then, once the semester began, they would come together again.

This semester won’t be the same. Hannah won’t be coming back.

“I feel more now that she’s not going to be there,” Oglesby said.

Yet, Oglesby knows she’s not alone. She and Hannah’s family are close and speak at least three times a week. Friends such as Clark and Al Asfoor, who have been on hand to help Oglesby empty out the old apartment, have also helped make the adjustment a little less painful.

Right now, Oglesby’s method is to take it all in as it comes.

“There are good days and there are bad days,” Oglesby said. “I think about her everyday.”

Oglesby anticipates that any breaks or holidays during school, such as Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Cinco De Mayo or Spring Break, will be the hardest because she and Hannah were usually together on these days.

“I try to think about all the good times,” Oglesby said.

When missing Hannah becomes almost unbearable, Oglesby chooses to go through old pictures or visits one of their favorite restaurants.

The key is staying busy, Oglesby said.