Hannah was an active young girl that quickly found her voice and began performing at the age of 5. In high school, she was a majorette and starred in the performance of Fiddler on the Roof. After graduating a year early in 1975, she joined the US Air Force’s marching band and choir, then gave birth to her first child, Kristopher, the following year. Hannah worked as a Texas Peace Officer for the City of Dallas and, after the birth of her daughter Nyddia in 1982, she went on to become the first female Deputy Marshall of Dallas. It was during this time she met her husband LJ, a fellow officer and Air Force veteran, who would remain devoted to her until his death in 2017.
While continuing to serve warrants and raise a family in Dallas, Hannah sang at local venues like the Longhorn Ballroom and opened for artists Lorretta Lynn, Janie Fricke, and Lee Greenwood, among many others. In 1988, Hannah packed up the family and moved to Nashville, where she adopted her stage name “Hannah Philana Onassis.” A budding star, Hannah performed on the Ralph Emery Show and rubbed elbows with Roy Acuff, Minnie Pearl, Bill Anderson, and Hank Snow backstage of the Grand Ole Opry. Her big break came with the single release of "I've Been Branded" on Badger Records, and she signed to tour in her blue bus, originally owned by Carl Perkins.
It wasn’t long before touring and Music City took a toll on Hannah and her family. In 1992, they returned home to Texas where Hannah put the mic away and focused on starting a private investigation business. Within three short years, however, Hannah was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis, and the aggressive form of the disease quickly robbed her of her ability to walk.
Despite the physical limitations set on her, Hannah maintained her strong spirit and unrelenting determination and, in 2004, earned a bachelor's degree in Criminal Justice from the University of North Texas. Hannah gradually lost full use of her legs as the disease crept into her extremities. Requiring full-time care, she moved to Dallas Rehab Center in 2012, where she spent the next decade zooming around on her scooter, organizing social events, and creating and selling her handmade crafts. She even upheld her annual tradition of attending the State Fair of Texas and often submitted her creations for display in the Arts & Crafts exhibits.
In early 2024, Hannah's lungs gave way to pneumonia, eventually resulting in respiratory failure due to complications from the Multiple Sclerosis. She took her last breath early Easter morning on March 31, 2024 with her son and daughter by her side singing Patsy Cline.
Hannah is preceded in death by her father and mother, her brothers Jimmy Lawson and his wife Jeanine Lawson, William "Billy" Lawson, and her husband of 34 years, Lonnie J. "LJ" Hannah, Jr. She is survived by son Kristopher Morgan-Lawson Widener, his wife Amber, daughter Nancy Nyddia-Lena Hannah, her husband Manuel Soto, and her grandkids Chase Kristopher Widener, Luke Nicholas Widener, Sofía Soto-Alvarez, Olivia M Soto, and Paolo Oliver Soto.
In lieu of flowers, please support the National MS Society, www.nationalmssociety.org
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