‘A bright shining star’
Tributes to an ‘amazing girl’ who was ‘destined for great things’
Family and friends have this week paid tribute to 18-yearold Mia Craen, who died in a crash on Saturday.
Her mum Michelle Craen spoke of her zest for life, adding: “Mia was a bright, shining star. Everyone who met her, even if they didn’t know her, loved her. She was constantly smiling, always positive and brought peace to everyone.”
And brother Finlay told the County Times she was “the most amazing girl. She had a heart of gold. She was just lovely and loved by many.”
Mia grew up in Horsham, went to Greenway, Millais and Collyer’s, and was a talented athlete.
She played hockey for Horsham and Sussex and was part of Horsham Triathlon Club, Atlantis Swimming Club and loved running and cycling. She played football for Millais and Sparrows.
A fundraiser set up by Finlay to give her the ‘send off she deserves’ has already been backed by more than 1,000 people, including England and Aston Villa star Jack Grealish – her favourite footballer.
“I don’t even know what to say. I wasn’t even expecting a couple of hundred pounds. It’s just unreal. That’s just from the community of Horsham,” said Finlay. “It’s unreal seeing how generous people have been.”
Mia died when her white Fiat 500 crashed into a tree off the Worthing Road in Horsham on Saturday, said police.
A family has paid tribute to a Horsham teenager who had an ‘amazing zest for life’ after she died in a crash.
Mia Craen was driving her white Fiat 500 on the B2237 Worthing Road about 12.30pm on Saturday 30 January when she collided with a tree, said police. The 18-year-old was pronounced dead at the scene.
Her mother Michelle Craen paid tribute to her ‘always positive’ daughter. She said: “Mia was a bright, shining star. Everyone who met her, even if they didn’t know her, loved her.
“She was constantly smiling, always positive and brought peace to everyone.
“She had an amazing zest for life and never had a bad word to say about anyone. She was truly unique.”
Michelle said the family have been amazed by the amount of people who have contacted them about Mia.
She added: “We want to thank them all for their lovely words. We haven’t been able to thank everyone. We’d also like to say thank you for the flowers, cards and offers of food, and to our church, Latitude, for their support and organisation of meals.
“Mia worked part time at McDonald’s, at Buck Barn. She was due to start her apprenticeship at Eurovia today (February 1) which she was very excited about.”
Mia was born in Poole, Dorset, but she spent most of her life in Horsham. Michelle said: “She was a goalkeeper at Horsham Hockey Club and was destined for great things – she won player of the season twice, despite only playing for them for two seasons. She also played for Sussex.
“Mia was also part of Horsham Triathlon Club, Atlantis Swimming Club and played for Sparrows Football Club when she was aged six to eight. She was a brilliant runner and enjoyed cycling.”
Mia went to Greenway Academy, Millais and Collyer’s, and also played football for Millais School, her mother said. She added: “Her aspirations were to try her best, and to do everything with boundless optimism and positivity.
“Mia leaves behind myself, her dad Peter, and siblings Finlay and Jude. She has family all over the world.
“Mia’s zest for life makes me think I should get a band with ‘what would Mia do’ (WWMD), as she grabbed life with both hands.
“She never did anything half-heartedly. We know that getting used to Mia not being around is going to be hard.”
A spokesman for Horsham Hockey Club said: “The Club is very sorry to hear of the loss of Mia Craen who sadly died on January 30 in a tragic accident.
“Such a bright and friendly girl, nice to everyone, happy to help anyone and now missed by everyone. With much love, you will be sorely missed. All your friends at Horsham Hockey Club.”
Headteacher at Millais Dr Alison Lodwick, said the school was ‘deeply shocked and saddened by the devastating news of Mia’s tragic accident’.
She said: “Mia was a truly effervescent young person who was very popular with her peers and made a significant contribution to the life of Millais over the five years she was with us.
“In particular, Mia immersed herself into sports and was a very talented member of multi school teams, being an absolute inspiration to all the younger students when she was in the upper years. She had a rich intellectual rigour and she brought this energy and spark to everything she did, where she went.”
Dr Lodwick added: “The deepest heartfelt sympathy is sent to her family from all students, staff in the Millais community who are thinking of you at this very difficult time.”
Police are continuing to appeal for witnesses to determine what happened in the crash. Anyone who saw a white Fiat 500 travelling in the area immediately before the collision – or anyone who captured what happened on dash cam – is asked to email collision.appeal@sussex.pnn. police.uk quoting Operation Sunningdale.