Tributes to teenager with 'zest for life' killed in crash near Horsham
Mia Craen's family have paid an emotional tribute to her
The mother of a teenager killed in a crash in Southwater has described her as a 'bright, shining star'.
18-year-old Mia Craen from Horsham was pronounced dead at the scene following the incident on the B2237 Worthing Road on Saturday (January 30th).
She was driving her white Fiat 500 when it left the road and hit a tree at just before 12.30pm.
Sussex Police has published the following tribute from Mia's mother Michelle Craen:
“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.
“We have been amazed by the amount of people who have contacted us about Mia. 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 to 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 (Monday, February 1st) which she was very excited about."
Mia, who was born in Poole in Dorset but spent most of her life in Horsham, went to Greenway Academy, Millais and Collyer's and also played football for Millais School.
Mia was a keen sportswomen, playing as a goalkeeper for Horsham Hockey Club, where she won player of the season in both of her seasons with the team. She was also capped for the Sussex side.
“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.
“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.”
Police are continuing to appeal for witnesses to determine what happened.
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.