Big Red Hannah Sollecito Trumpet Moms

Hannah Sollecito

Hannah Sollecito ('11) was a Trumpet Mom from 2009-2010 that passed away on April 28th, 2016. She truly embodied the definition of a Trumpet Mom. As a way to commemorate her life, the Trumpet Section has decided to rename the position of Trumpet Mom to The Hannah Sollecito Trumpet Mom. Although words will never be able to truly capture Hannah's kind and unconditionally loving nature, below are some stories about Hannah and what she was like, so that her spirit and personality will never be forgotten.

• "She always exuded enthusiasm and wore a giant smile. As a senior, you tend to care for your freshmen as if they were your own children, and Hannah made it easy to think of her as one of your favorites. She was a kickass trumpet player (who apparently is descended from the composer of taps), a wonderful friend, and overall a vibrant, amazing person who left a lasting impact on everyone she met."
  -- Eric Frackleton '08



• "My strongest memory of Hannah is from a conversation we had during our freshman year. We were sitting in Ivy Room one afternoon, and somehow, I don't remember exactly how, the conversation turned to our insecurities. Hannah got me talking, then shared some of the things she struggled with, and finally brought it around to a version of her 'Just do you, man' advice. This conversation stands out vividly in my memory for two reasons: first, because Hannah had the empathy to draw this out of me. I'm not one to talk about my feelings very much, but Hannah, on a random afternoon, and without any preamble on my part, could tell that I didn't feel good about some stuff and got me to talk about it. She felt what other people felt; it was easy to see this on a broad level with her socially-oriented work, but this really highlighted how true it was on a personal level. Second, this interaction shows how kind Hannah was. We pride ourselves on the 'trumpet persona' -- brash, cocky, cool -- and Hannah was all of these things, but she was also very, very kind. Not a lot of people are, and the world is a poorer place for her loss."
  --Henry Hinnefeld '11



• "I can vividly recall Hannah's first First Night. The two of us walked together from the Nines down to Haus, and as we chatted I learned that she came from a "serious" high school marching band, as I had. Not wanting her to be discouraged by the chaos she was witnessing, I shared with her my own experience of transitioning to the BRMB. But by the time we were halfway down Buffalo Street, I had shifted out of recruiting mode. I realized I was talking to a freshman who already knew with total certainty that she was a trumpet and she was right where she belonged. Later that night, the Haus upper-classmen began the annual ritual of trying to predict which newcomers will stick around. Hannah was one of those freshmen who seemed like she might be a little too strait-laced to take part in our shenanigans, but I remember telling people that I expected we'd see a lot of her. Fortunately for all of us, that turned out to be true."
  --Sarah Sorenson '08



• "Many of you from the classes of '13 through '17 are aware of my (sometimes uncomfortably strong) love of the Everybody's Everything dance, but few probably know that I inherited that passion from Hannah. It was the first or second home game of my freshman year, and we had set up to concert at the tailgate. I was still pretty new to band and in my self-conscious little shy kid shell. But I remember when EE was called up, she pulled me out to the side and just said matter-of-factly, "we're dancing now." I watched, I followed, and I don't think I had ever seen anyone have as much fun in a single moment as that. After the song ended, Hannah grinned at me and said something to the effect of, "It doesn't matter what you think the people watching will think of you. No matter how dumb you look when you're dancing, if you let go and have fun with it, all they'll notice is how happy you are." That sentiment has stuck with me every day since."
  --Nick Lamson '14



• "Every time I wanted to panic, every time people were shouting something and I had no idea what was going on, every time I was lost, and every time I just needed someone to talk to, Hannah would somehow always appear and chat all of the worries away. What's truly flabbergasting is that I know this experience was common to pretty much all of the Class of '14 trumpets. How she could possibly have had enough time, energy, and compassion to so thoroughly mother us all is still incomprehensible to me, and I don't think any of us can ever forget how important she really was in shaping our experiences. "
  --Nick Lamson '14

Meet Mew and Apples:

2023 - Joseph "Sugar" Nazario '24
2022 - Aiden "Seven" Thomas '23
2021 - Andrey "Tuub" Yao '23
2020 - Oscar Tendilla '21
2019 - Andrew "Sweet Jeans" Ardizzone '20
2018 - Hagan "Tips" Han '19
2017 - Diana Herrera '19
2016 - Liz VanDenburgh '17
2015 - Rachel Faust '16
2014 - Melissa "Happy Melissa" Harbert '15
2014 - Gennesis Meza '15
2013 - Elizabeth "Little Liz" Corteselli '14
2012 - Elizabeth McDonald '13
2011 - Jessica Kane '12
2010 - Hannah "Peppy" Sollecito '11
2009 - Hannah "Peppy" Sollecito '11
2008 - Lisa Linde '09
2007 - Angie Wolfgang '08
2006 - Sarah Sorenson '07
2005 - Audrey Chung '06
2004 - Audrey Chung '06
2002 - Susie James '04
2000 - Ilyse Cody '02
1999 - Cheryl Bauer '00
1998 - Wendy Turner '99
1997 - Betsy Leis '97
1996 - Betsy Leis '97
1995 - Laura Moy '96
1986 - Mary Hohenhaus '87