Georgianna Selena Darnell, lovingly known as Selena, passed away on September 24, 2026, at the age of 52. Though her life was far too short, it was filled with a remarkable amount of love, service, celebration, and care for the people around her.

Selena was born in Jacksonville, Florida, to George and Dianne Gibbs. She grew up in Thomasville, Georgia, before marrying the love of her life, Christopher Darnell, and moving to Hilton Head Island, South Carolina. In 2023, Selena and Chris made their home in Anderson, South Carolina.

Selena was a speech-language pathologist by profession, earning her master’s degree in Speech-Language Pathology. But to the people who knew her, caring for others was much more than a career, it was simply who she was. She had a heart for serving people, especially those who needed a little extra care. She would bring patients birthday celebrations, complete with decorations and a sweet treat, because she believed people deserved to know they were remembered and worth celebrating. When a patient was unable to manage their own laundry, Selena would bring their clothes home and wash them herself. She never seemed to see these things as extraordinary. To her, they were simply what you did when someone needed you.

Selena’s greatest love was her family. She and Chris were best friends, and there was nowhere she would rather be than with him. She loved cooking for the people she loved and finding ways to make ordinary moments special. Every Christmas brought new matching family pajamas, and decorating for the holidays was one of her favorite traditions, complete with the little woodland creatures she loved so much. She could happily spend an evening watching Food Network competition shows, but her greatest joy was always being surrounded by her people.

She was a wonderful mom to her children, Beau Darnell and Edi Cummings, and she loved her son-in-law, Bryson Cummings, as though he were her own child. She kept track of birthdays, anniversaries, appointments, milestones, and all the little days that mattered to the people she loved. She had a gift for knowing when someone needed comfort, and her answer was often food, sometimes sending a favorite comfort meal, and more often than not, making it herself.

Selena celebrated people. She noticed them. She remembered what mattered to them. She wanted the people she loved to feel loved.

There were also the little things that made Selena unmistakably Selena: her little red shoes, her cute outfits, her excitement over celebrating someone else, and the way she could cry simply because her children were getting along and spending time together. Seeing Beau and Edi together, or Beau with Bryson, could bring tears to her eyes because there was nothing she loved more than seeing the people she loved love one another.

Selena’s faith was a deep and treasured part of her life. She loved hearing Beau play In Christ Alone on the guitar, and she held firmly to the hope of Christ. Her family finds comfort knowing that she has been made new and is now home with her Savior.

Selena is survived by her husband and best friend, Christopher Darnell; her children, Beau Darnell and Edi Cummings, and her son-in-law and “third child,” Bryson Cummings; her parents, George and Dianne Gibbs; her sister, Michelle Stelly, and brother-in-law, Todd Stelly; her nephews, Sam and Ben Stelly and Will Darnell; her niece, Emma Darnell; and her beloved dogs, Penny and Jasper.

She leaves behind a family who will miss her deeply, but who will also carry her way of loving others forward: celebrating the people around them, showing up when someone needs help, making food for those who are hurting, remembering the important days, and never missing an opportunity to make someone feel loved.

A memorial service celebrating Selena’s life will be held on September 28, 2026, at 4:00 p.m. at Church of the Ascension, 1302 Oakland Avenue, Anderson, SC 29621.

We will miss her more than words can say. But we are grateful for every year, every meal, every Christmas morning in matching pajamas, every little red shoe, every celebration, and every ordinary moment that became special simply because Selena was there. 

“In Christ alone my hope is found…

”Until we see you again, Mom.

Brown Funerals is assisting the family.