Hannah Michelle Morris, 49, died Tuesday, August 6, 2024. Born in Newport News to Ada and Mike Morris, she had been a Smithfield resident all her life.

Hannah was born Vanessa Michelle Morris, but after researching the meaning of her name, her parents didn't like the meaning of Vanessa. It means "beautiful useless butterfly" and she was anything but useless. Upon further research they felt that the Lord led them to the name Hannah, which means "God's grace" which fit her perfectly. God gave them His grace for 49 years and they cherish every moment they had with her.

A healthy and happy baby, at 5 months old she received her DPT shot which, back then was bound with the mercury-containing preservative thimerosal. The very next day her body was limp, and she lost all muscle control. She started having myoclonic infantile seizures and developed Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome, which is a complex, rare, and severe childhood-onset epilepsy syndrome. It is characterized by multiple and concurrent seizure types including tonic seizure, and cognitive dysfunction.

Mike and Ada were blessed to be able to keep Hannah with them at home her entire life and she thrived under their care, even learning some sign language to signal her wants and needs.

Hannah was preceded in death by her grandparents, Susan and Michael Morris and Lily Mae Rounsaville Yocum.

All services will be private.

If you feel so inclined, the family would be pleased with a memorial donation to The Alliance of Christians and Jews, the Bible Broadcasting Network, or the Christian Broadcasting Network.