Every year since she lost her son to a motorcycle accident in 2012, Suzanne “Sam” de St. Jean returns to the same place at the Santa Maria Cemetery in early December.
It’s not where her son is buried, but the Angel of Hope statue is there, and so is a brick with his name on it. There are Angel of Hope statues across the U.S., de St. Jean explained, where parents who’ve lost children gather to mourn and heal together.
A special memorial service is planned this year for Dec. 1 at 1 p.m. at the statue, where locals can join together and honor their lost family, de St. Jean explained.
“I can’ tell you the amount of people that are so blessed by having this memorial here in Santa Maria,” she said. “Because other families, their child has died elsewhere, but at least they have a place here in Santa Maria they can go.”
The idea of Angel of Hope comes from a story by Richard Paul Evans called The Christmas Box, about a woman who lost a daughter and mourned at an angel statue, de St. Jean explained. The statues have spread to cemeteries across the U.S., she said, and allow mourning parents to buy bricks that are engraved with the names of lost family members.
One larger brick is placed near the statue, she explained, and another smaller one gets to go home with the family. She first became involved with Angel of Hope as an organization after she lost her son, de St. John explained, going through the process of getting the bricks made.
“It’s been very helpful and healing because we were pretty lost when Michael died,” she said. “And we didn’t have anything to hold onto, and we could go there and see his brick.”
The program was started in town by Lori Macagni and her husband, Danny Macagni, former Santa Maria police chief, who lost a newborn, de St. John explained. When the couple decided to move away from town, they asked de St. John and her husband if they would take over the responsibilities for the organization
From signing people up and ordering their bricks to maintaining the location, the de St. Johns oversee everything for Angel of Hope.
“We’re responsible for maintaining the angel, and that brings us such pride and joy,” she said. “Sometimes when we’re there cleaning up, we’ll have families come who have lost a child. You find peace there.”
Anyone who buys a brick gets to have a small ceremony to place it when the time comes, de St. John said. They can choose to have a private ceremony, but many prefer an open ceremony, she said. Families that visit the statue often make friends with other visitors there, she explained, as they connect over similar experiences or losses.
At the Dec. 1 ceremony, those who have a brick around the Angel of Hope will also receive a small booklet and carnation flowers to place around the statue and in its outstretched arms. The event is so families from across town can all come together and support each other and heal, de St. John explained.
The ceremonies are cathartic for parents like her, de St. John said, and being able to facilitate and organize them has meant a lot, too.
“It helps me heal, it really does,” she said. “It’s never going to bring closure, but it helps me heal and bless others as we’ve been blessed, by this beautiful statue and the memories we will always have.”
Highlights:
• The city of Lompoc demolished the former Moore Mill & Lumber site at 320 North D St. to allow the construction of a new transit operations and fleet maintenance facility, which will serve as home base for the City of Lompoc Transit (COLT) staff and 14 transit vehicles. In a Nov. 20 media release, the city detailed an overcrowding issue that would be remedied by moving transit operations and fleet maintenance to the new facility, which the city projects will raise nearby property values once completed. The project is currently slated for completion by 2020, according to the city, and funding will come from state and federal transit and transportation grants.
• The Kiwanis Club of Santa Maria-Noontime delivered baskets brimming with Thanksgiving dinner ingredients to local families in need on Nov. 20, sharing turkeys, ham, pies, and more items collected by members. “Kids and their families need Kiwanis, now more than ever before, and the Thanksgiving basket is an example of how our club can meet a need in our community,” Randy Beal, the club president, said in a statement. More information is available at kiwanis.org.
• The Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors adopted a recommendation to reduce the cost of an annual County Parks day-use pass for veterans who served in the U.S. Armed Forces or Reserves. The pass, which was previously $50 for local veterans and $60 for non-locals, is now only $10 for veterans regardless their county of residence. The pass is accepted at and available for purchase at the Cachuma Lake Recreation Area and the Jalama Beach County Park with a valid California driver’s license or I.D with a veteran designation. More information is available at countyofsb.org/park.
This article appears in Nov 29 – Dec 6, 2018.