Gone but not forgotten, Sam Hanna inspires Tower Hill soccer brothers and coats charity

As Tommy Hanna came off the soccer field at Delmar recently, having just scored a late game-tying goal, his coach had a touching surprise for the Tower Hill School senior.

Chris Aitken first asked Hanna who had scored the equalizer in the DIAA Division II Tournament quarterfinal. Hanna said it was his brother, but he did not mean Bo, his junior Tower Hill teammate, who was also on the field.

Hanna, instead, credited Sam, his 13-year-old brother who died last December after a lifetime of battling congenital heart disease.

Aitken responded by pulling on and turning inside out the captain’s armband Hanna was wearing, revealing the hashtag #P4S – Play for Sam – Aitken had written inside it before the game.

“That was something special for sure,” Tommy Hanna said recently at his Greenville home.

“I was wearing that the whole game and didn’t even know it,” Hanna added. “It meant everything to me. We’ve dealt with a lot the past year and over the course of the season. My coaches, especially coach Aitken, have been beyond supportive the entire way. It just meant a lot to know everyone was still thinking of him and he was that close to me in that special moment.”

Charity organization now Sam's Kids

Tower Hill prevailed in overtime 3-2 with a goal off Tommy Hanna’s throw-in before falling 1-0 at Sussex Academy in the quarterfinals Saturday, Nov. 11.

So the soccer season is over, with that late spiritual push from brother Sam. But his family has made sure his legacy endures.

Soon after Sam Hanna was born and had his first heart surgery a week later, parents Thomas Sr. and Lexi started the Delaware KIDS Fund, with the acronym meaning Kids in Distressed Situations. Their efforts have involved animal therapy and education (Lexi is a veterinarian), supporting food pantries at the Newport area’s Richey and Richardson Park elementary schools and providing winter coats for needy kids.

To bring attention to the latter cause, the annual Camping Out for Coats was started in 2017 in Newport, with participants sleeping outdoors on a frigid November night. This year the event took place last Friday night under the banner of Sam’s KIDS, which is the fund’s new name.

Finding warmth in campout

“This was Sam’s favorite event each year,” his dad, Tom Hanna Sr., said before the event. “He and I camped out together many times. It’s going to be emotional and powerful, but we anticipate so many people Sam has touched in many different ways will be in attendance and we’ll heal together.”

The fund has raised enough money to purchase and distribute coats to 10,000 kids in 18 different schools.

“We try to give everyone a taste of what homeless children who don’t have coats feel,” Hanna Sr. said. “It’s also a source of pride, a source of confidence for them. In many cases, it’s the first new coat they’ve ever had.”

The Campout for Coats is not a drive in which previously worn coats are collected. It’s a fundraiser, as the foundation teams with Operation Warm, which manufactures and delivers the coats.

“The campout is powerful,” said Hanna Sr., who operates the Harvey Hanna Associates commercial real estate and development company. “It’s where we raise the money. But what’s really powerful is when we go to a school in a tough neighborhood and distribute the coats and you see the impact and what it means to them.”

'A new life'

Sam’s absence will certainly leave a void – “It’s been a tough year,” Hanna Sr. said – but, as it did for his soccer-playing brothers, also provides inspiration.

“It’s a new life,” Lexie Hanna said. “You're born into a new life and Sam is in heaven, and as sorrowful as we are, he’s in the safest hands ever. And he is bringing people together like you wouldn't believe.”

Bo Hanna switched to No. 4, Sam’s number on his Independence School basketball team, this year to pay tribute to his brother.

The #Play4Sam mantra, first suggested by Sam’s friend and sports teammate Ryan Fox, quickly became a powerful force. Several of Tower Hill’s younger soccer players had been teammates with Sam.

“It just gives you that extra drive, knowing everything he had to go through and his positive mindset throughout it all,” Tom Jr. said. “He never backed down to any challenge, so I think that's just something everyone can take into their life.

“I know if I'm ever tired on the field, and I'm sure Bo thinks the same, it's just finding that extra drive, use that superpower that he gives you.”

Coach Chris Atkien recalls emotional night

Aitken is from a family of 10 kids, so he is familiar and quite appreciative of those bonds. The recent death of one of those siblings, brother John, provided a bit more understanding of the Hanna brothers' void.

Winning the game at Delmar, Aitken said, was as exciting as when Tower Hill won the state Division II title in 2016 because of the pride involved and emotions expended. Sam Hanna had been ballboy for Tower Hill’s state semifinal game last year and Aitken had given his family the game ball.

With 19 seniors playing soccer this year, Tower Hill had several captains but had never actually used an armband to designate one as a game captain before. This year it did, and Aitken had assigned it to Tommy Hanna, a standout player and leader, for the Delmar game and then secretly gotten out his Sharpie.

“It’s me thinking and knowing that if something good’s gonna happen, Sam’s gonna be with him,” Aitken said.

Something very positive and quite profound occurred. A defender and midfielder, Hanna’s goal was his first this season.

“In between regulation and overtime, I had to walk away from the group,” added Aitken, overcome himself with the moment’s moving circumstances. “… It certainly was an emotional night.”

Have an idea for a compelling local sports story or is there an issue that needs public scrutiny? Contact Kevin Tresolini at ktresolini@delawareonline.com and follow on Twitter @kevintresolini. Support local journalism by subscribing to delawareonline.com and our DE Game Day newsletter.

This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: #Play4Sam fuels Tower Hill soccer brothers, inspires Sam's Kids