I still remember Hannah Garman.

I interviewed her grandmother in December 2008, her father a month later. Hannah was 4 years old, and she was dying. Her family wanted to get people to send her Christmas cards, to make her final days colorful and fun. It was her final wish, and through it Hannah touched thousands of people all over the world.

Here are three stories I wrote about Hannah's journey.

Dec. 18, 2008

Hannah Garman wants to celebrate Christmas in a very big way.

But the plucky 4-year-old -- she will turn 5 in January -- was diagnosed in late October with glioblastoma multiforme, an aggressive brain tumor, in her cerebellum.

The prognosis, according to her grandmother, Shirley Garman, is not good. "The tumor is very aggressive," Mrs. Garman said. "It is not something they can take away."

The Garman family is working overtime not to dwell on grim reality. Mrs. Garman said they'd rather focus on the positive aspects of Christmastime.

And that means Christmas cards for Hannah.

Lots of Christmas cards.

It would mean the world to a little girl who wants to play and jump and run but has lost most of her basic motor skills.

"She's basically lying in bed," Mrs. Garman said Wednesday. "She's not the same little girl she was."

Hannah has always liked to play, the proud grandmother said. "She ran like the wind. She didn't like to lie around; this is hard because she was always so active."

But now -- despite three surgeries and other treatments at Johns Hopkins and Hershey medical centers and plans to begin chemotherapy and radiation treatments later this month -- the Garmans are measuring Hannah's remaining time in weeks.

And they want to make sure those weeks are good ones.

"Three or four days ago, her spirits were very low," Mrs. Garman said. "But now she's happy and smiling. She's been like a changed girl through all of this. But some of it's coming back.

"She's just a sweetheart."

Opening Christmas cards is "one thing she can do," Mrs. Garman said. "She's a little stronger, and she's ripping them open herself. She loves looking at the pictures, and we read every card to her."

Hannah's family -- father Darin and siblings Jordan, 9, and Brittany, 12 -- lives in Lititz. Hannah lives close by with her grandparents, Shirley and Bob Garman, who provide care while Hannah's dad is working. Hannah's mother died two years ago of breast cancer.

The family has already received about 700 cards. Hannah's room is filled with them.

Many more will be presented to Hannah this evening at a gathering at Lititz Area Mennonite School.

"I've heard 30 fire trucks are coming," Mrs. Garman said.

According to an announcement from Heart of Lancaster Regional Medical Center, 25 to 30 fire and other emergency-response vehicles will gather outside the hospital at 6:30 p.m. before proceeding in a convoy to the school with "thousands and thousands" of cards to deliver to Hannah.

Warwick Township police will escort the caravan, and many county residents will ride along to deliver their cards in person.

Additional cards can be mailed to Hannah Garman at 704 Orchard Road, Lititz, PA, 17543.

Jan. 28, 2009

Hannah Garman is blessed with just about everything a little girl could want.

Except good health.

Hannah, whose plight touched off a flood of Christmas cards from around the world to the sick little girl in Lititz, turned 5 on Jan. 16.

Her dad, Darin Garman, said it was a pretty good day.

"We had a nice birthday party for her," he said. "She was really good that day. She sat in her wheelchair for about two hours before she got tired."

She even was able to scoot cheerfully around the room in her new pink Barbie Jeep for about 10 minutes before exhaustion kicked in, he said.

It's all about keeping her spirits high, Garman said.

Hannah was diagnosed in October with glioblastoma multiforme, an aggressive and incurable brain tumor in her cerebellum.

Several surgeries and other treatments at Johns Hopkins and Hershey medical centers -- including chemotherapy and radiation therapies that were discontinued this month -- failed to halt the tumor's inexorable growth.

"It didn't stop it in its tracks, like we hoped," Garman said. "There was no reduction in size. And those daily trips (to Hershey) were hard on her. So when the doctor asked us, 'How do you want to spend your time with her?' we thought, 'Why put her through this?'"

The situation is all too familiar to Garman, whose wife, Christine, died of breast cancer in June 2006.

A month since Christmas, Garman said he still cannot get over the outpouring of love and generosity on Hannah's behalf.

The Intelligencer Journal reported in December that Hannah, who had little energy left to play, wanted to receive a lot of Christmas cards.

Garman had no idea where that would lead.

The story circulated quickly, drawing on the power of the Internet to spread to a global audience.

Garman said Tuesday Hannah has received 161,300 cards -- and they're still coming.

"We're still getting about 100 a day," he said. "It's overwhelming. But Hannah still enjoys opening the cards. She likes ripping them open and looking at the pictures."

Cards have come from more than 40 countries, including Australia, Thailand and Japan. Soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan have sent her cards, Garman said. "We just got two today from the United Arab Emirates. That was a first."

A big night for Hannah was Dec. 18, when 106 fire trucks, plus ambulances and police cars, formed a parade in her honor and delivered 10,100 cards in one massive burst of community support.

"It was incredible," Garman said. "I don't even know how to begin to thank everyone."

Gifts, too, have come pouring in for the little red-haired girl, Garman said.

"You hear so much about the bad in people," he said. "But here, all these people -- total strangers -- have just showered us with things."

He tried to write "thank you" notes to each person who sent something, but there was no way to keep up with the flow.

"Tell everyone I said thank you," he said Tuesday. "I just can't express it enough."

His biggest thanks go to his parents, Bob and Shirley Garman, who have been full-time caretakers of Hannah during this illness. His other two children -- Jordan, 9, and Brittany, 13 -- have "been great," he added.

The inevitable question is, how is Hannah doing today. Garman sighs a bit, and smiles -- but it's a tired smile all the same.

"She's at home," he said. "She hasn't walked since Nov. 20. She can't see out of one eye. She can spend maybe 15 to 20 minutes a day sitting.

"We see things going backwards," he added. "They tell us that things can change very rapidly. So we're just doing what we can to keep her comfortable."

Friends and family drop by often to see Hannah, Garman said. "She loves to be read to. Friends come over and they color or work with clay. But then she gets tired and wants to lie down."

Hannah also gets daily hospice visits to monitor her condition, Garman said.

"Her mind is sharp. Mentally, she's all there," he said. "But physically, she's not."

But Garman is astounded each day by Hannah's unyielding spirit.

Sure, she's moody, he said. "But that's the steroids. She's on them to keep the swelling down ... and keep her out of pain. But they also make her hungry, moody, demanding.

"But what's remarkable is, she has none of that adult self-pity," Garman said. "There's no questioning, no 'Why me?' She just moves on. Is it a child's innocence? I don't know."

Garman said he is amazed at the support his family has received.

Now, he wants to share it.

"I fully appreciate everything that we've received," he said Tuesday. "But we have enough.

"Hannah has gotten all this attention, but there are a lot of people in the same situation."

So, when a local organization wanted to run a drive to collect stuffed animals for Hannah, Garman told them to hold the event -- but give the gifts to a local hospital in Hannah's name.

"We've been blessed," he said. "But there are others out there who could benefit from people's generosity."

Garman maintains a website with updates on Hannah's condition at caringbridge.org/visit/hannahgarman. And the family, he stressed, hasn't given up hope.

"We're still hoping for a miracle," he said.

June 17, 2009

Hannah Garman defied the odds.

The little red-haired girl from Lititz -- whose battle with cancer and a plea for Christmas cards touched people's hearts the world over -- was given only a few weeks to live late last year.

But Hannah, who was diagnosed with glioblastoma multiforme in October and wasn't expected to see Christmas, struggled through to her fifth birthday on Jan. 16. She celebrated Easter and even managed to dip her toes in the Chesapeake Bay during an early summer outing.

She rode in a fire truck in the Mother's Day Make-a-Wish convoy and, on May 30, she fulfilled a dream by serving as flower girl in her cousin Sheri's wedding. Her favorite colors were pink and purple, and she loved to draw.

Hannah died Tuesday evening, surrounded by her family.

Her father, Darin, who faithfully kept a record of Hannah's progress at CaringBridge, a website devoted to the care of people with terminal illnesses, announced the news with a brief message just a few hours later.

"Tonight at 5:45 Hannah went home to be with Jesus," he wrote at 9:18 p.m. "She was surrounded by family & passed peacefully.

"Right now I'm pretty exhausted. It's been a long day. Please pray for the family & me over this tough time."

Hannah's grandmother, Shirley Garman, said Tuesday that the family is coping with the loss with the support of family and friends.

Knowing it was coming didn't make the reality any easier, she said.

"She was a brave little thing. She stayed brave right to the end," Shirley Garman said.

"But it really hits hard, when it comes. We're just trying to get through the days without her."

Glioblastoma multiforme is an aggressive and incurable brain tumor that attached itself to Hannah's cerebellum.

Hannah's immediate family -- father Darin, brother Jordan, 9, and sister Brittany, 13, all of Lititz -- rallied around the cute, cheerful girl. Grandparents Bob and Shirley, also of Lititz, took Hannah in and cared for her while Darin was working.

Hannah's mother, Christine, died of breast cancer in 2006.

Efforts to arrest the spread of Hannah's cancer included several surgeries and other treatments at Johns Hopkins and Hershey medical centers, as well as chemotherapy and radiation treatments that were discontinued in January. Steroids reduced her pain levels, but made the girl hungry and moody.

Realizing Hannah didn't have the energy to enjoy a typical Christmas, her family started to spread the word that she wanted Christmas cards -- a lot of Christmas cards -- so she could tear them open and enjoy the pictures.

Opening Christmas cards is "one thing she can do," Shirley Garman said in December. "She's ripping them open herself. She loves looking at the pictures, and we read every card to her."

The initial story about Hannah's plight appeared in the Intelligencer Journal on Dec. 18. Later that day, a parade of 106 fire trucks, plus ambulances and police cars, delivered 10,100 cards to Hannah in one massive burst of community support.

Her story circulated quickly, drawing on the power of the Internet to spread to readers all over the world.

All told, Hannah received more than 165,000 cards from more than 40 countries, including Australia, Thailand, Japan and the United Arab Emirates. American soldiers in Afghanistan and Iraq sent her cards, too.

A few days after his little girl turned 5, Darin remarked with wonder on Hannah's boundless spirit despite the constant pain and uncertainty.

"She has none of that adult self-pity," he said. "There's no questioning, no 'why me?' She just moves on. Is it a child's innocence? I don't know."