…[Hannah] loves all kinds of art, including painting, drawing, sewing, knitting and making friendship bracelets. “I love art because I can just be myself,” she says. “I don’t need to talk. My art communicates for me.”
Hannah’s mother, Merrylee Kandel, was reading the Autism Speaks newsletter last October when she saw an article inviting artists to submit work for the UN 2012 Autism Awareness stamp. When she told her daughter, Hannah immediately ran to her room and chose four of her pieces of art. From them, the UN panel selected her colorful “Crazy Love” heart-design painting. She was the only woman among the eight winning artists…
Hannah admits that winning made her nervous, but she hopes people think her work is “fabulous.”
“This is an opportunity that has been coming for 18 years,” says Mrs. Kandel, an advocate for autism who helped establish Eden Autism Services in Naples in 1996. The family has parlayed the recent media exposure–from mentions by local television and print to being noted in the crowd outside the “Today Show” by Ann Curry–into a discussion about autism in general, and the importance of early intervention.
“It’s great for awareness, because this epidemic is happening globally,” Mrs. Kandel says.
Hannah and her family traveled to New York City for the World Autism Day activities on April 2, which included a panel discussion about the disease.
“I am lucky to be in the United States because they know the most about Autism Spectrum Disorder,” Hannah says. The Kandels were among a UN group of 130 who went to the [New York Stock Exchange] to see fashion designer Tommy Hilfiger, a spokesperson for Autism Speaks, help ring the opening bell. Among the gifts she received as recognition for her stamp design Hannah received a commemorative coin from the UN and will receive a $1,000 stipend in exchange for granting the UN permission to use her work…
Shortly after she returned to Naples from New York, Hannah gave a speech on April 13 as part of the Promising Pathways autism conference at [Florida Gulf Coast University]. The national conference’s keynote speaker was Temple Grandin, one of the most famous people in the world who has autism.
“Temple is my role model,” Hannah shared in her speech. “She followed her dreams, even when others didn’t believe in her.”
Hannah’s dreams are to earn her GED, live independently, have a family and become a movie star. She attends Eden School, but also has been a student at Seacrest Country Day School, Vineyards Elementary, Naples High School and Journeys.
The FGCU conference was not her first speaking engagement. Hannah addressed 400 people during the January 2011 conference of the Center for Autism and Related Disabilities.
“Hannah is not defined by her autism,” her mother says. “All of the children on the autism spectrum are unique and have great potential. It’s all about awareness and acceptance.”
When Hannah is not being honored by the UN or speaking at conferences, she enjoys Irish step dancing, running (she recently completed a 10k), gymnastics, horseback riding and spending time with Honey Bun, her dog and best friend.