Red and purple hearts, respective colors of Tabor Academy and College of The Holy Cross, decorated an overpass on I-195 and were held up by family, friends, and supporters all the way down Front Street past Tabor and beyond Marion village down to Pitcher Street for Hannah Strom’s June 3 homecoming.
Strom had been recovering away from home since a January 15 collision with a pickup truck in Vero Beach, Florida, took the life of her teammate Grace Rett, injured several others on the Holy Cross women’s rowing team, and left her with a lengthy and complicated road back that began in Florida and saw her continue at Massachusetts General Hospital and Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital in Boston. On June 3, she returned home with a police escort and was cheered by hundreds as she passed through the Tabor campus and the village.
Those in attendance know the Stroms in many ways, be it from starting every spring season with a ceremonial trip to Kool-Kone, the family-owned, ice cream drive-in on Route 6 in Wareham, or from sports or even through their golden doodle Shannon.
Across from the general store, Deb, Lara, and Pam were among attendees representing the Friends of Marion Dogs. It turns out their dogs play a significant role in their relationship with the Strom family, as Tom Strom, Hannah’s father, is a member of the group that congregates at Silvershell Beach and Washburn Park. Shannon is a popular dog and even visited Hannah during her stint at MGH.
The love shown to the Strom family on this day is a reflection on what the family has meant to the community. “Their whole family does a lot for all the communities, not just Marion. They give 110 percent all the time, like anytime anybody asks,” said Jessica Kelly, who supported from the Front Street sidewalk with her two children. “(The Stroms) donate to the school; they’re just such a great family… They support everybody, every chance they get.”
By Mick Colageo