Xavier’s Angel of Hope statue offers hope to those grieving loss of child

CEDAR RAPIDS - An 'Angel of Hope” statue at Xavier High School offers hope to those who are grieving the loss of a child, and its existence can be traced to the 2012 tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn.

The murders of 20 children and six adults had a profound effect on Kylie DeWees, who was then a junior at Xavier.

'I was really emotional about it,” said DeWees, who grew up in Marion and now attends Loras College. 'I don't get upset often. I was at tennis and my mom told me what happened. Then I came home and sat down at the TV and was watching.

'For some reason, I decided to go and sit down at the piano.”

Her family had received the piano, which belonged to her grandmother, two days beforehand. DeWees had never taken a piano lesson before, but she began to write music to honor those killed at Sandy Hook.

Through the sale of an album she released, called 'Believe,” DeWees raised $19,000. She decided to use that money to buy an Angel of Hope statue for Xavier, after hearing Newtown was erecting one as well.

The Angel of Hope was first described in 'The Christmas Box” by Richard Paul Evans. According to Judy Ramsey, adolescent faith formation coordinator for St. Joseph Catholic Church, there are now more than 120 Angel of Hope statues nationally.

'There was an Angel of Hope statue that was erected in a park that people just found themselves flocking to because of the comfort found with the family in the book,” Ramsey said. 'They were relating it to finding their own comfort.”

When DeWees was younger, her mother, Lisa, helped raise money for an Angel of Hope statue in Iowa City to honor a co-worker's child, who had died. She said Evans visited the statue, and a prayer service was held.

A similar prayer service is held at each of the Angel of Hope statues each year, to allow families to formally grieve. This year, the service was Dec. 6 at Xavier.

During the service, families gathered around the statue. Candles were lit and prayers were offered based on Scripture.

Names were then shared of those who have passed away. The service ended with a communal prayer, Ramsey said.

The plan is to hold the service at Xavier at 7 p.m. every Dec. 6.