Yeppoon, Rockhampton community pay tribute to mum Tanya Carr

Heartbroken family, friends and colleagues of a Qld mother-of-five who suddenly passed away on school grounds are remembering the ‘bright, incredibly positive’ soul as a woman who stood up for others.

Bri Santitto, Stanley Pittman and Owen Pittman with Tanya Carr, who is being remembered as being selfless and kind after her sudden passing. Supplied

Yeppoon woman Tanya Carr was not afraid to stand up for people struggling.

In the wake of her sudden passing at her workplace, St Brendan’s College, Tanya’s devastated daughter Jillian Hana recounts a life lesson her courageous mother taught her.

“When my little sister was having a lot of troubles with her tonsils (and) mum actually did a story with The Morning Bulletin,” Jillian said.
“She was trying to get it out there and shed some light on it, saying ‘you need to pick up your slack here, people are suffering’.”

Tanya Carr, with Ivy Pittman, Kimmy Lalor and Chris Pittman, is being mourned following her sudden passing in Yeppoon. Supplied

As well as being a well-loved member of the Yeppoon and Rockhampton community, Tanya was also a beloved mother and a grandmother.

“She had five kids and she loved us all the same, and her grandkids as well,” Jillian said.
“I’m going to miss her, and a lot of people will.

“She just made everything a lot brighter than it was.

“She made life better.”

Central Queensland woman Tanya Carr tragically passed away after suffering a medical episode at elite all-boys' school St Brendan's College on March 28, 2025. Supplied

Tanya was well-loved at the elite all-boys’ school where she worked as a cleaner, tragically passing away from a medical episode on school premises on March 28.
“She loved the staff and the boys,” Jillian said.

Jillian described her mother as a warm, friendly and popular soul.

“She was the most loving, selfless person you’d ever meet,” she said.

“She was always incredibly positive, and you wouldn’t have a bad day when you were talking to her.

David Pittman and Kimmy Hana with Tanya Carr, who was highly regarded at her workplace, St Brendan’s College. Supplied: Jillian Hana

“She was the kind of person that you would walk down the street with her and people will be going ‘oh, Tanya, how’s it going?’

“And you’d be stuck there for two hours while she was having a conversation - it wouldn’t matter what day it was, or where she was, there was always someone to stop her.”

Jillian will never forget the day her loving mother taught her how to drive a manual car.

“She took me out to a dirt road at the old resort when I had just gotten my Ls,” she explained.
“She hopped out and said ‘alright, you’ve gotta drive now’ and I’d never driven a manual before.
“She said ‘I can’t, my knees hurt’ - she had arthritis in both her knees.”

Kevin Lalor and mum and grandma Tanya Carr, who is being remembered fondly. Supplied

Tanya said her mother told her she could go over 40kmh.

“The car’s not going to kill you, I’m right here next to you,” Tanya told her frightened daughter.
“And she walked me through all the gears, and that’s how I learned to drive.

“She was always cracking a joke about it after - saying ‘you were so scared, and now you won’t drive anything but manuals’.”

Tanya said her mum was originally from Gundagai in New South Wales, but had grown to call Yeppoon and Rockhampton home.
“She lived on the coast for the better part of ten years, and then moved to Rockhampton when it got too expensive,” Jillian said.

Central Queensland woman Tanya Carr tragically passed away after suffering a medical episode at elite all-boys’ school St Brendan’s College on March 28, 2025. Supplied

After Tanya passed away, Jillian Hana and her sister Bri Santitto started a GoFundMe page to raise money.
The fundraiser is currently sitting at over $16oo in donations, and Jillian couldn’t be more grateful.
“The people donating are a mixture of strangers and people we know,” she said.
“I feel so incredibly grateful for literally every single person who has donated - half of them are people I don’t think even knew mum.

“To feel like wanted to support us in any sort of way just makes us speechless, especially seeing how much we’ve raised so far.

“None of us can even express just how grateful we are for it.”

Originally published as Yeppoon, Rockhampton community pay tribute to mum Tanya Carr