Eyad’s Parents- Haifa
and Michael Hanna
Mom
met Dad in medical school. They were
just friends. When medical school
finished, Dad had gone to Cleveland, OH for training. Mom eventually went to Cleveland as well, and
that’s where the friendship led to marriage.
Mom grew up in a small town in Syria. She was the youngest child with four older brothers! That made her tough. She is a Nephrologist (kidney doctor). She had finished her training when Maz (Eyad’s brother) was
born. She put her career on hold for 6
years to raise her kids. Despite that,
she has been a leader in her field, opened a dialysis center (which focuses on
teaching patients to take charge of their care), and her achievements have been
recognized by the Kidney Foundation of Ohio.
She is a fun loving, energetic, kind, and
exceedingly generous woman. Her patients
love her; deservedly so, as she gives them time and attention even when she
doesn’t have it to give. Her friends
love her because she is rock-solid and there when needed (probably where Maz got that intense
loyalty). Her family loves her for the
same reasons and more. We’re lucky to
see some of her character in ourselves.
Dad is a Cardiologist (adult). He grew up in a mountain village in Syria and
is the oldest of ten siblings. The shape of his nose and his wariness of
dogs originated there (good stories). He
went to med school before his time and no one really knows how old he is (also
a good story). He graduated tops in his
class and still reads like he is in med school today. He runs a Heart Failure center in Cleveland
which has won acclaim. He gives lectures
around the country on the subject (yet has difficulty checking his
e-mail!). At one point he was Chief of
Staff at Huron Road Hospital (1970’s - we didn’t see much of him at that time).
Dad
is the best clinician his kids have ever seen.
He’s the reason why Maz
is so good and Eyad can read an EKG. His
patients could not be in better hands.
He loves to teach but is willing to learn from his students. He’s the guy the hospital calls in the middle
of the night because he gets up and takes care of people. He’s the guy friends call anytime for the
same reasons.
Nana
is my, well, Nana. She’s Mom’s older
adopted sister. She came to live with us
in the USA shortly after Maz
was born. She helped raise us, was
always there when we came home from school, taught us how to play cards, fed us
and taught us how to make good food, etc., etc., etc., and loved us.
Nana’s health deteriorated in the past several years. Thanks to the fact that Mom is a saint, she
spent that time in a place run by nuns and by love. Somehow, working non-stop, Mom and Dad found
time to visit her and take her out on the town.
Maz visited her more
often than should be possible (evidenced by the frequent calls I received from
Nana on Maz’s cell-phone). We love Nana.
She died in my arms about 4am, August 21st,
2005. She helped raise two generations
of my family. We will forever be
grateful for her time with us. We miss
her, but thank God for not allowing her to suffer. I hope she smiles as she looks in on us.
Eyad’s
brother- (click
here for link to his page)
Everybody (including Maz) met Emily at X-mas, 2003. Emily is wearing Mom’s engagement ring from
35 years ago (I think that counts as approval).
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