‘Angel of Hope’ weathered hurricanes but has gone missing from her Horry County beach spot

Amanda Barrett wanted to make a special trip while vacationing in North Myrtle Beach with her boyfriend.

The 25-year-old New Jersey resident planned to honor her mother and grandmother with shells placed at the base of a beloved statue nestled atop a sand dune in the city’s Cherry Grove area.

After snapping photos of the “Angel of Hope” late Thursday night, the couple looked forward to Saturday morning’s tribute.

But when they returned, the concrete marker that weathered three hurricanes and countless smaller squalls was gone — opening a mystery many want to be solved fast.

“It broke my heart because that statue is basically a blank headstone left for people to pray to and leave good words for those who have passed that they were close to,” Barrett said. “It was literally like someone desecrated a grave and stole the headstone.”

North Myrtle Beach spokesman Donald Graham said the statue is on county property, and Horry County Police spokesman Mikayla Moscov could not immediately be reached for comment Aug. 22.

In addition to her disappearance, the notes and handmade shells piled up at her base were strewn about, Barrett said.

The statue was perched on a dune looking upon the ocean.

“It’s just a staple to this area. We got to see it and take photos and there were so many beautiful shells with and without names written on them. Even some just said, ‘please watch over us,’ because they believe in the angel as a guardian,” Barrett said.

Particularly over the last several years.

When Hurricane Isaias barreled into the Grand Strand two years ago, North Myrtle Beach’s Cherry Grove community absorbed much of its wrath.

More than 430 structures were damaged at a cost of $2.4 million, and its prized sand dunes were mauled.

But protected from the storm’s beating winds was that angel, who came to symbolize resilience and for many people of faith a reminder that miracles might very well exist.

“Gosh, she’s brought so much joy,” said Marissa Cooper Winstead, an avid dawn runner who has captured the angel at sunrise many times.

“People just looked forward to going out there,” she said. “After COVID, it just seemed like people were clinging to something positive when there wasn’t much positive going on. So I think it meant a lot to a lot of people.”

Instead of leaving behind loving messages to her mother and grandmother, Barrett and boyfriend ended up with the final photographs of an intact angel - a shell necklace dangling below her waist.

Cooper believes the community will get its protector back.

“You don’t take God’s angel,” she said.

This story was originally published August 22, 2022 at 12:43 PM.