What made the main character unique in Harbor Me?

Haley is the narrator of the novel and also the memory keeper for the group. She describes her own situation at home with her uncle and father and tells the reader what is happening at school with the other five kids who spend time in the ARTT room. She decides that she wants to record the conversations that they are having each Friday afternoon so that she will have a way to remember everyone. This is partially motivated by the fact that she has difficulty remembering the sound of her mother's voice who passed away when Haley was only three years old. It is becoming increasingly difficult to even remember what her mother looked like and Haley only has one photograph of her that partially shows her face and a hand with bright red polish on the nails.

Haley is bi-racial and sports a wild head of red hair. Her mother was black and her father is white. However, both sides have family members with red hair, so it was destiny that Haley would end up with it. She has difficulty managing it, but Holly's mother tames it and puts in fresh cornrow braids once a week. This happens mostly because Haley's uncle, who is raising her, simply does not know how to take care of it. Haley also barely knows her father as he was arrested for drunk driving and vehicular homicide, the very accident that killed her mother. He has been in prison for the last eight years and is anticipating his release on parole.