![]() Three months later, she and Craig traveled from their home in the heart of England to the picturesque coastal Georgia community to get married. After three operations and six invasive procedures, the 36-year-old was given the all-clear in spring 2012. In 2010, Penny learned she had a rare gastrointestinal cancer. Hope is what Shannon's parents, Craig and Penny, had been holding out for. The family is making a return trip to the Isle of Hope. The 4-year-old is the only one in her family full of energy after an overseas flight, and she's ready for the next leg, to Savannah, Georgia. Shannon Nevin laughs and plays with her two stuffed animals, a pink Peppa Pig and Rory the Tiger. "This is our hour," she says, "of nobody but me and her." It's a trek they've made together at least 10 times before. They're more like sisters, she says, and she's looking forward to the drive from the airport back to Thomaston. As soon as she sees Cheri Anne, she sprints forward and throws her arms around her. But Cheri Anne's cousin, Kathryn Ozley, has been smiling for the past 30 minutes as she waits. Her eyes tear up as she remembers her grandmother: "She's just always been such an influential person in my life." It's tough to fly with a baby, but Cheri Anne says she wanted her daughter to be there with her. Now they're heading back to Cheri Anne's hometown of Thomaston, Georgia, this time for Black's funeral. The baby was named for her great-grandmother, Ruby Dunn Black, who cradled her for the first time last week. She pushes a stroller through the arrivals area of Atlanta's Domestic Terminal and carries her daughter, Ruby, in a BabyBjorn. for her early morning flight from Denver. Sheila smiles knowingly, hands Philip the car keys and gets into the back seat.Ĭheri Anne Hummel's cheeks are rosy and her eyes are red. She tells her mom she's starving, and that she wants to get Italian food. "Hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii! Look at my babies!" she says, shouting so loudly about the wedding that strangers waiting nearby congratulate them.īritney quickly tosses her luggage in the trunk and says she's ready to go. How she joined the military to pay for medical school so her family wouldn't have to.Īt the curb near baggage claim, Sheila squeals when she sees Britney and Philip coming. How her straight A's got her a full ride from Spelman College. How she's been fearless and loved traveling ever since. How, at age 2, she toted a mini-suitcase and took her first flight alone to visit an aunt in Arizona. "This is her life, a new chapter."Īs Sheila waits for Britney and Philip to pick up their luggage, she prepares herself for the first thing she knows Britney will say ("I'm hungry") and the food she'll want to go out to eat (Italian).Ĭircling the airport, she thinks about how amazing her only daughter is. "One thing I know that he would want her to do is live," she says. Knowing her daughter is doing what Wendell wanted helps Sheila keep going. This bittersweet blend of joy and heartache is all too common at the world's busiest airport, where moments of love and loss are carried like precious cargo and unwieldy baggage. He won't see Britney wear the wedding dress she picked out after shopping at stores in three states. He won't dance with her at the reception. She knows Wendell won't walk their daughter down the aisle. Sheila's trying to hold it together, but she's been tearing up all week. Wendell, her husband of 27 years, died of a heart attack in March. More than 200 people are coming to the wedding, but Sheila can't stop thinking about the one person who won't be there. And their flight from Columbus, Ohio, just arrived. This weekend, Britney is marrying her fiancé, Philip. Her cell phone is chirping with calls and texts. ![]() Today, Sheila's home is full of invitations, goody bags and gifts. … And I remember as she started to grow and started to date and everything, I just kept praying." "When the doctor said it was a girl," she says, "I immediately started praying for her mate. Sheila is only days away from a moment she's dreamed of for decades. Her daughter Britney just texted four words that sent her scrambling: "On the Plane Train." Sheila Payton barrels down I-85 in her silver Chevrolet Sonic.
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