Meet Alabama’s Angel Of Hope, whose story started with pound cake

It was five days ago when Steve Hardwick placed the flower arrangement and the ribbon on the statute.

The banner displaying Shannon Allen Williams’ name stood proudly on the Angel Of Hope — it was surrounded by beautiful colors.

Shannon passed away in 2014 at the age 38, but Steve wanted Shannon’s mother to know that her son has not been forgotten.

June 11, 2024, would have been Shannon’s 48th birthday.

Ann Williams still mourns. Shannon has been gone 10 years now, and every day, a sight, a smell, a memory results in the pain returning. “Shannon died unexpectedly,” Ann told me.

She will never forget her son, but she at times wonders if America just might. That’s why — 10 years later — Steve Hardwick’s gesture means so much.

Steve Hardwick has never lost a child, but he can’t imagine the pain felt by a parent who has. So for the last eight years, Steve has kept memories of children alive, honoring them on the dates they came into the world and the dates they left it. Steve honors children from the Dothan area and throughout the Wiregrass — and his mission started with a pound cake.

It was June of 2014, and then 56-year-old Steve Hardwick heard the news. A great kid had been lost — 17-year-old Cody Hayes of Webb, Alabama, had lost his battle with leukemia. Steve Hardwick bowed his head and thought of the Ashford High School senior who loved ‘Bama football, baseball, and riding in his Jeep. Too young, too soon.

Steve Hardwick glanced at the cake pan. Cooking had always been an unknown, but Steve’s idea-filled brain was at it again. What if he took his mom’s old recipe and made a pound cake? What if he made … several? He could raise some money for Cody’s family.

Steve Hardwick gave it a go. Eggs, butter, sugar and lots of each — somehow the pound cake looked good and smelled even better.

So too, did the next one, and the next. Steve Hardwick had mastered the art of making a pound cake

So a fundraising drive it would be. Maybe $500 would be nice — Steve could give the money to Cody’s parents, Frank and Alicia. It’s the least Steve could do for a couple who lost their beautiful son.

It was late June of 2014, and the Hayes’ family remained in mourning. Steve Hardwick counted the money from his first-ever pound cake fundraiser. He was shocked when the amount didn’t add up to $500. Instead, it totaled $9,000 — enough to save the Hayes’ family home.

It was 2015, and Steve Hardwick was cranking out pound cakes by the dozens. He was learning about other sick kids and distraught families. He held more fundraisers, paying $2,000 out of his pocket to buy supplies for each one. It was all good, because Steve wanted to offer hope to families who had lost children. Steve Hardwick was becoming an Angel Of Hope.

It was 2016, and Steve Hardwick was on a mission: He baked 280 cakes for one fundraiser for a child with a brain tumor. He raised thousands of dollars for families who lost children from suicide or car accidents. And in the middle of 2016? Steve Hardwick took his next big step.

He named it the Angel Of Hope statue — he raised over $9,000 to pay for the construction of the memorial at Westgate Park in Dothan.

Concrete, iron fencing, lighting, all paid for with help from Steve. It was, and is, a beautiful sight. Families can come to pray, come to reflect, come to never forget.

It was early 2017, and oh, how Steve loved little Addison Kate White of Enterprise. Another big fundraiser, and Steve couldn’t wait to give back and make Addison Kate smile.

Steve was heartbroken when he heard the news. Addison Kate had gone to Heaven at the age of 3 months.

Steve Hardwick mourned, and he became more driven than ever. More baking, more pound cakes, more hope.

It was January of 2020 and word started to get around Facebook. He was asking $35 dollars a cake — he was once given as much as $1,000.

Steve held a fundraiser for Avalynn James, and he was devastated when he heard that news. Avalynn was 5 years old.

It was late 2020, and the pandemic put a bit of a hitch in Steve Hardwick’s plans. But Steve kept motoring as he approached 16 fundraisers for families in need. Steve even recruited some help with baking cakes, and as the pandemic subsided and Steve drew more donations, money was used to buy flowers and ribbons for some children who died years ago, some who died that month.

Steve Hardwick thinks of his journey often. Floral arrangements are getting expensive, but he continues to think of how he can comfort those who are part of the worst club he can imagine. “In the last week alone, I have put ribbons and flowers at the statue for 10 people,” Steve told me. “Birthdays, dates of passings, they are important dates to parents who have lost a child.”

Steve’s mission can be sad and painful, but it can also be rewarding. He’s met parents who have mourned loss and parents who have celebrated a life spared. He thinks about how many children he has met – children who fought the fight and lived to tell about it.

The 10-year-old with the new heart? Rylann Day is doing great.

The young girl with the brain tumor? Years ago, Addison James gladly accepted a mixer from Steve, and she went on to raise thousands of dollars for families in need. Today, Addison is healthy and happy.

Steve Hardwick’s mission is not over. He can’t say how long he will continue delivering flowers and ribbons to the Angel Of Hope, but I have a feeling his heart won’t let him quit — he’s even posting pictures of the memorials and photos of those who died on Facebook at Wiregrass Angel Of Hope. “A parent’s greatest fear is their child being forgotten after they leave us,” Steve told me. “I will not let them be forgotten.”

It was 5 days ago, and Ann Williams was surprised to see the flower arrangement and the beautiful ribbon at the Angel Of Hope memorial. She certainly felt grateful when she visited the memorial — just one of over a thousand mourning parents whose hearts have been lifted thanks to the sympathetic man who started his mission eight years ago by baking a pound cake.

“It was such a beautiful thing for Steve to do,” Ann told me. “I’ll be taking the ribbon and flowers to Shannon’s grave in Brundidge, Alabama, next week. Shannon lies there with my late husband and another son.”

Ann Williams’ voice softened as she spoke again. “Thanks to Steve, people are not forgetting my son,” she whispered.

Thanks to the man who will never let us forget.

Thanks to the man named Steve Hardwick, Alabama’s Angel Of Hope.

Rick Karle, who writes a weekly ‘good news’ story, is a 25-time Emmy winner and a 43-year veteran of broadcast news who has lived and worked in Alabama for 35 years. Send him your story suggestions to: RickKarleGoodNews@Gmail.com