Showaker, Hannah (1978-2003)

Revision as of 15:49, 23 November 2010

Mennonite Weekly Review obituary: 2003 Jan 27 p. 1

Birth date: 1978

text of obituary:

By MCC News Service

SALATIGA, Indonesia — A Mennonite Central committee worker was killed and another was missing after they were caught in a flash flood Jan. 22.

The workers were hiking in the mountains outside the city of Salatiga on the island of Java. Another worker who was with them escaped injury.

Hannah Showaker, 25, of Newville, Pa., was found dead one mile from the point where she was washed away by the flood waters.

Alana Fife, 21, of Calgary, Alta., and most recently of Winnipeg, Man., was still missing at press time.

The third worker, Daniel Warren of Shoreline, Wash., escaped injury, along with a local friend.

All three MCC workers are part of the Serving and Learning Together program for young adults. They arrived in Indonesia in August.

Showaker was a 2002 graduate of Messiah College, Grantham, Pa. In Indonesia she was teaching English at an elementary school in Banjutowo Village, java. She was a member of Carlisle (Pa.) Brethren in Christ Church. Her parents are Joan Showaker and the late don Showaker.

Fife is a 2002 graduate of the University of Winnipeg. In Indonesia she has been teaching English at an elementary school in Solo, Java. She is a member of Calvary Temple in Winnipeg. Her parents are Darryl and Cynthia Fife.

"The entire MCC family and supporting faith community are deeply shocked at the tragedy that has befallen these two families," said MCC executive director Ran Mathies. "Both Hannah Showaker and Alana Fife have been described as young women of grace and strong character who were making an impact on children in their communities in Indonesia."

MCC workers have hiked before in the area, a popular picnic spot. Warren was taking a photograph of Showaker and Fife when the water came rushing through.

Mennonite Weekly Review obituary: 2003 Feb 3 p. 1, 10

text of obituary:

Indonesia flash flood claimed their lives

By Robert Rhodes

Mennonite Weekly Review

School was our, and they had hiked to a popular picnic spot in the Telemoyo mountain area on the Indonesian island of Java. The area is about 370 miles east of the capital, Jakarta, in a country famed for its lush forests and ancient Buddhist temples.

But on Jan. 22, as two Mennonite Central Committee workers stood in ankle-deep water near the Sekar Langit Falls, having their picture snapped by a colleague, tragedy was about to wash over them.

[Transcriber's note: The same two photos published on page one of the 27 Jan 2003 Mennonite Weekly Review were repeated here.]

Hannah Showaker, 24, of Newville, Pa., and Alana Fife, 21, of Winnipeg, Man., were killed when a wall of water rushed over the falls and swept them downstream.

Showaker's body was found that evening about a mile away. The next morning, rescuers found Fife's body, which had been carried nearly six miles by the torrent.

Fellow MCC worker Daniel Warren of Shoreline, Wash., was photographing Showaker and Fife when the flash flood struck. Warren escaped harm, but an Indonesian friend who had accompanied the trio was swept a short distance before scrambling ashore with minor injuries.

Showaker, a 2002 graduate of Messiah College in Grantham, Pa., and Fife, a student at the University of Winnipeg, taught English through MCC's Serving and learning Together, or SALT, program. They had been in Indonesia since August, along with Warren, another SALT worker.

When Showaker and Fife were swept away, Warren immediately summoned help. MCC officials said about 100 local residents, including worshipers from a local mosque, rushed to the scene and later helped recover the women's bodies.

Showaker, who taught in an elementary school in Java's Banyutowo Village, and fife, who taught at a grade school in solo, Java, were staying at MCC's headquarters in Salatiga during a school break. The trip to Telemoyo and the falls was one often made by other MCCers, officials said.

After the tragedy, MCC Indonesia workers planned to accompany both women's bodies back to the United States and Canada. A memorial service was held in Salatiga Jan. 25.

Eva Chermack, who directs the SALT program at MCC headquarters in Akron, Pa., said MCC staffers in Indonesia were devastated by the tragedy.

"There's been an overwhelming reaction from all places," Chermack said. "The Indonesian community there is very, very devastated."

Chermack said in dealing with the aftermath of the deaths, she was touched by one encounter in particular.

When speaking with the mother of one of the women, Chermack said instead of personal grief, she heard considerable concern expressed for the family in Indonesia who had hosted the SALT worker.

"That was the most poignant moment for me," Chermack said.

Showaker was a member of Carlisle (Pa.) Brethren in Christ Church, which was sponsoring her yearlong term with SALT. One of Showaker's letters from Java was included in a recent church newsletter.

Pastor Alan Robinson said Showaker and her family had been involved with the church for many years. Showaker, he said, was a quiet but devoted young woman with a strong interest in mission work and service to others. She ahd considered going to graduate school at Eastern Mennonite University at Harrisonburg, Va., after her return from Indonesia, Robinson said. There she wanted to study missions and then return to the service field.

Robinson got to know Showaker during a church service trip to South Carolina, where the congregation regularly helps with Habitat for Humanity projects. Robinson believes Showaker's sense of call and service came from these journeys.

Showaker's SALT term was not her first foray into overseas service. While a student at Messiah, Showaker spent the summer of 2001 in Belize with 'Target Earth International, a Christian group that combines environmental work with helping the poor in 15 countries.

"I think that had a profound impact on her," Robinson said. "God was certainly working in her life through that experience."

One of Showaker's professors at Messiah remembered her hard work and inspiring presence in the classroom.

"She had a spark, a compassion and such a work ethic — what a special person," said Anita Voelker, an education professor. "She was marvelous at teaching."

Mennonite Weekly Review obituary: 2003 Feb 17 p. 6

Mennonite Weekly Review obituary: 2003 Dec 29 p. 7