The dedication of the city’s new Angel of Hope statue, an international symbol of peace and healing, was a tearful yet joyful event. On Aug. 19, city residents and nonresidents alike gathered at the Herriman Cemetery under the slanting sun to acknowledge lost loved ones and find hope and solace through commiserating with others. 

The first official Angel of Hope statue was not cast in bronze but in ink and was created by a writer rather than a sculptor. In his 1993 novel, “The Christmas Box,” author Richard Paul Evans describes a woman mourning the death of her child while standing at the base of an angel monument in the Salt Lake City Cemetery. 

The family of Danny White performs a song to celebrate his life. (Photo courtesy Herriman City)

Originally, the novel did not include the angel statue. “The book was mostly done, but something was missing,” Evans said. 

A friend recalled seeing a woman grieve in front of an angel statue at the Salt Lake Cemetery when she was a girl. The snow had quietly drifted down to blanket the bereft woman and the angel. “She told me the story, and I realized this was the missing piece,” Evans said.

A story comes to life 

After the novel gained popularity, grieving parents from around the country began searching for the monument in Salt Lake City. When Evans himself went to find the statue, it was no longer there. “I asked the sexton, who said there had been some flooding in that area, but no one knows for sure what happened to it,” he said. 

To bring the angel to life again, the author commissioned another statue from Salt Lake City-based father-and-son sculptors Ortho and Jared Fairbanks. “It was just a natural course of events. The book was about healing people,” Evans said. “It started as just something for my kids, but once I realized how it was healing people, there needed to be a statue.”

Dressed as an angel, Cheyenne Benward reads a poem expressing her love for her lost siblings with the help of her mother, Christa. Cheyenne is Benward’s only surviving child. (Photo courtesy Herriman City)

“We had two weeks to make the angel—something that would normally take months,” Jared Fairbanks said. “We used my 5-year-old daughter as a model and put the likeness of Richard’s daughter in her face.”

The sculptors first made the angel using clay and then cast it in bronze at a Utah County foundry. Matching the description in the novel, the half-inch thick statue is mostly hollow and stands 4 feet, 3 inches tall with a wingspan of 5 feet, 2 inches. The word “HOPE” is subtly etched onto her right wing. “It was an honor to work with my father and daughter,” Jared Fairbanks said. 

The first Angel of Hope was dedicated on Dec. 6, 1994, to coincide with the date of the death of the child in the story. It would become the first of over 120 Angel statues to dot the nation, with one in Canada and one in Japan. 

In 1996, Evans created an emergency children’s shelter called The Christmas Box House, which grew into The Christmas Box International, a charity that serves minor and young adult victims of abuse, trafficking and neglect.

A mother’s journey

Christa Benward reflects tearfully on the loss of her children. (Photo courtesy Herriman City)

When Herriman’s Christa Benward read The Christmas Box over 20 years ago, the story resonated deeply with her. Benward has tragically lost multiple babies. Some were miscarried and some lived only a few days, but each has a name and place in her heart. 

“I didn't know at the time that the Angel had been made available for grieving families,” she said. “I soon learned that you could bring them to your communities. Which became my plan, but because of all my losses and trials, it took me a while.”

Three years ago, Benward was finally ready to pursue her dream. To place an order for an Angel, interested parties must raise at least $9,000 and pay another $9,000 before shipment. The $18,000 does not include the monument’s base, which can cost an additional $3,000 to $6,000. 

“Be assured that all fees have been carefully negotiated to ensure the highest quality and lowest price and that Richard Paul Evans, Inc. and The Christmas Box House International receive no profit from these monuments,” the author’s website says. 

Herriman’s Angel event was the first dedication that the sculptor, the Angel representative from the Christmas Box International and the author were able to attend together. From left to right: Jared Fairbanks, Lisa Johnson and Richard Paul Evans. (Photo courtesy Jared Fairbanks)

“The fundraising was hard,” Benward said. “I started a GoFundMe, and I got a little community support through that. I had neighbors and family donate, and my daughter and I paid for the majority of the angel. It's hard work, and there are ups and downs during the process, but once Hope has arrived, it is all worth it.” 

The dedication of Herriman’s Angel was the culmination of her tireless efforts to raise the money and bring the statue to the resting place of her children. The event included a welcome from Herriman Mayor Lorin Palmer and tender remarks from Salt Lake’s Angel of Hope Coordinator Lisa Johnson, Jared Fairbanks, Benward, Benward’s daughter, and resident Kathy White, whose son, Danny, was interred in the Herriman Cemetery after he succumbed to a sudden aneurysm when he was only 18. 

During a musical number performed by the White family, Benward’s daughter, Cheyenne, moved through the crowd dressed as an angel, gently touching onlookers with a wand. 

Evans offered the dedicatory prayer, after which attendees were invited to lay a white carnation at the base of the Angel in honor of deceased loved ones.  

A community of healing

The Angel has brought together countless people from different backgrounds. For many, she offers relief and the strength that comes from standing with others. She helps to rekindle trust that despite heartbreak and darkness, the future holds peace, cheer and light.

Sculptor Jared Fairbanks explains his part in the making of the statue. (Photo courtesy Herriman City)

 “I love how her arms are stretched out like she’s embracing you. The Angel (Hope) has helped me heal. We visit different Hopes around Utah, and she just radiates hope and healing when you look at her,” Benward said. “The Angel of Hope community has become my angel family.”

"Doing what I do and being a father—it’s been an honor to be a part of something that has helped so many in the grieving process,” Jared Fairbanks said.

“It’s inspiring to see our community come together in such a meaningful way to create the Angel of Hope memorial,” Palmer said. “The generosity and dedication of those who made this possible will provide a place of comfort and reflection for families for years to come.”

Meaningful items are displayed at the dedication to remember lost loved ones. (Photo courtesy Herriman City)

“I love the purpose of the Angel and to see how people respond, and to see the peace it brings them,” Evans said. “One woman asked if I had lost a child, and I said no, and she said ‘I don’t think you understand what you’ve done, how important this is.’” 

“Many of us have lost a loved one, and some have no place to go to grieve. Even if you have a gravesite to go to, Hope just heals you. There is always peace around her, and you feel that,” Benward said. “My [daughter says], ‘If people just look at her, they can't help but see how beautiful she is, and it's like she has come from Heaven.’”

For more information about the Angel of Hope, visit https://richardpaulevans.com/angel-statues/.