The Greatest Lesson Was Love
St. Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians that, among other things, love “bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.”
This is seen beautifully in the heroic life that Tamara and Dennis Blankinchip lived with their daughter, Hannah, who had Down syndrome. Tamara recently shared her story with Team Iron Will. It is a story not of romantic love but of self-giving love—the kind of love shown by our Heavenly Father. It’s a love not only of parents for a child, but of a child for every person she ever encountered. And it’s a love that proves that every person has value and that every person can have a profound impact on the people around them.
Tamara had an uneventful pregnancy until she and Dennis went for the 17-week sonogram in March 2005. She said she knew from the mannerisms and from the repeated checking by the sonogram technician that something wasn’t right. Her concerns were confirmed when the nurse went to get the doctor, who came in and did a vaginal ultrasound, finding chromosomal abnormalities, heart problems, and other health issues. He called a high-risk doctor, who was able to see the couple that same day.
The high-risk doctor did another sonogram and confirmed the previous findings. Tamara remembers him being “very cold” as he told them that the baby was incompatible with life, and he listed all of the problems she would face. He suggested scheduling Tamara for an amniocentesis and then an abortion.
Tamara firmly told him that abortion was not an option, but she and Dennis agreed to the amnio so they would know the medical problems their baby was facing.
Ten days after the amnio, they received a call from Tamara’s regular OB, who said, “Congratulations, you’re going to be the proud parents of a little beautiful girl with Down syndrome. . . . They’re the most special children.” He continued encouragingly, “This is not a death sentence for her.”
At 37 weeks, Tamara gave birth to Hannah, and she said that Hannah “turned [her] life upside down in the best possible way.” The baby spent her first four weeks in the NICU with significant heart problems, such that she couldn’t even eat and had to be fed through a G-tube.
Tamara explained that, at the time, both she and Dennis were working, but when Hannah was just two days old, Dennis looked at the baby, then at Tamara and said, “You need to call [your boss] and tell her you have a new full-time job because she needs you more than your job does.”
He promised he would do whatever it would take to make it work financially, and he stayed true to that promise.
Tamara said, “That’s the biggest blessing he gave me. I had the honor and privilege of staying home with her and caregiving and advocating and taking care of her for 19 ½ years. She was pure joy.”
Hannah was in and out of hospitals for most of her 19 ½ years of life, battling heart problems and various other serious health issues, but Tamara explained that her sweet little girl never let her physical problems affect her or get her down and that she always had a smile and hugs for the doctors and nurses who took care of her.
Tamara shared that Hannah even befriended some of the homeless men who often sat outside of the hospital where she had her third open-heart surgery. What started as an offering of donuts and water grew into a daily hug for each of the men.
Tamara shared that this was the type of child Hannah was—always concerned about other people and never expressing worry or anger about her own health problems. She said that, even though Hannah spent the majority of her life isolated at home or in hospitals because of her health problems, “she did it all with a smile” and “never once complained.”
Indeed, Hannah’s concern and love were for her mother and her feelings, as Tamara said, “If she saw I was down, and times I was in tears (mainly toward the end of her life), she would put her arms around me, pat my back or the back of my head, and tell me ‘It will be okay, Mommy. I love you with all of my heart.’”
After the family moved to Alabama from their home in Florida, Tamara’s parents moved into their basement, and she served as caregiver for them and for Hannah. She explained that her dad and Hannah had a truly special and unique friendship, and her mother loved reading to Hannah.
In August 2023, Tamara’s father died, and Hannah’s health started declining again. Tamara remembers that she kept saying, “Hannah’s ready for heaven with Jesus and [Grandpa].”
For months, she would say this, and Tamara finally asked her pastor if God was preparing Hannah for death. He said quietly, “No, He’s preparing you.”
This wisdom proved correct, as Hannah’s heart problems intensified and she was diagnosed with Behcet disease, a rare autoimmune disease triggered by stress that Tamara described as simply “horrible.” She was then diagnosed with Stage 2 kidney failure.
Tamara and Dennis began hospice for Hannah in October 2024, and over the next several months, her health steadily declined. On March 26, 2025, Tamara knew her daughter’s death was imminent, yet Hannah was still looking out for her parents. Tamara said Hannah was consoling her and her husband and said, “Hannah ready for heaven, it will be okay.” And knowing that Hannah was losing her battle, Tamara whispered to her, “Run to Jesus, Baby, run to Jesus.”
Tamara said definitively that, if she had to do it all over again, she would only change all the medical problems that Hannah had, not the Down syndrome diagnosis, as that is what made Hannah who she was.
Tamara explained, “She taught me so many lessons in life. She taught me how to love people. She was so loving and kind and gracious.” She continued, “She just embodied goodness and kindness and love and contentment. I look back now at the person I was before Hannah. . . . I was so materialistic. It was just all about me. . . . She flipped my world upside down in the best possible way because it was about her; it was about taking care of her. She gave me purpose and she gave me fulfillment that I didn’t know I was lacking. She taught me how to be happy in the worst of circumstances.”
Tamara prays that other parents can find hope in her story and will see that all children, no matter their abilities, deserve a chance at life. She explained, “Kids with Down syndrome are just like typically developed children. They can do anything they put their minds to. Sometimes they take a little extra time to do it, but they’re capable of anything.”
Most significantly, they are capable of a love the world rarely sees. Tamara is in awe of the love her daughter brought to the world and the love she taught others to feel. She stated, “I think [people with Down syndrome] know what love is better than anyone I know.”
Hannah was born knowing how to love, and she taught this valuable lesson to her mother and to the people around her. Her enduring spirit, her kindness, and her fierce hugs made a profound impact on everyone she came in contact with. As Tamara said, “She’s the greatest teacher I ever had.”
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