Anna Laura Blackard, born January 26, 1994, passed away unexpectedly February 17, 2019, in Irvine, California. She is survived by her father, Steve Blackard of Jackson, Mississippi, and Woodrow and Karin (Blackard) Thomas of Cooper, Texas, as well as her step-sisters, Sabra, Virginia, and Allegra Thomas, and the families of her aunts, Melissa (Blackard) Kreston, Laura Florence-Bushnell, and uncle Tom Markham, and her cousins and their families, Stephen, Seth, and Chase Graham, Emily, Ian, and Hannah Markham, Kayla Davis, and Wylie and Mavis Florence-Bushnell. Anna was born in Jackson, Mississippi, and spent her early years growing up in Clinton, Mississippi before moving to Richardson, Texas, where she graduated from J.J. Pearce High School. For the past four years she resided in Southern California where she was working towards a degree in nursing and working to help others find sobriety

Anna's memory will be honored and her life celebrated by her family and friends March 16, 2019, at The Little Wren Chapel in Rockwall, Texas from 12:30-1:30 pm. In lieu of flowers, please consider contributing to the fundraiser set up on Anna's behalf: Anna's Impact, https://fundraise.shatterproof.org/annasimpact