CELINA - Melvin "Dale" Hanna had his very own spot at the Celina Bob Evans.
"He was here every morning at 7 o’clock," server Marsha Houston said. "He was our first customer every day. And he was waiting in the parking lot for us every day to unlock the doors.
Houston and fellow server Elena Beougher knew his order by heart - Country Biscuit Breakfast, eggs over hard, with home fries. He always had a water and coffee with creamer, too.
That's why Beougher could not help but to put out a cup of coffee on his table Wednesday morning. There also was a sign - In Loving Memory of Dale.
"He was the sweetest man you could ever meet. We called him sweet Dale. Yeah, sweet Dale, yeah," the servers said. "He always had a smile, even if he didn’t feel well. Just everyone, everyone loved Dale."
But Hanna's last day in the restaurant was Monday morning. Later that night, he was killed when a tornado swept a car into his home, where he was in bed sleeping.
"The pictures don’t show it," said Hanna's daughter, Diana Hanna. "I mean, there’s just no, I mean, the house is, it’s unbelievable. It’s unbelievable."
Diana Hanna and her older sister, Debra, are back in town for their father's funeral. The two are still wrapping their heads around what happened.
"He was a man that loved my mother immensely, and when mama passed five years ago, he missed her dearly," Debra Hanna said.
His daughters say Hanna was a man who loved construction and built several churches around Ohio. And they are taking comfort in the belief that their parents are now reunited.
"I think mom is saying, 'Dale, the pearly gates need adjustment and so, get your level out, it’s time to get to work,'" Diana Hanna joked.
Hanna's funeral is set for this weekend at Cisco Funeral Home in Celina.
Viewing is set for 9 a.m., with the service following at 11 a.m.