Remembering Buddy Hamm

Through the years, I've had several friends and family pass away and it's rare I say anything on social media. I generally don't because I don't put my pain out there. I tend to deal with things in a private manner, because I hate all of the fake "thoughts and prayers" comments. While I do public art, I'm kind of a private person; rarely do I post pics of my kids or relationship. I prefer privacy, always have and always will. For example, I was separated for almost a year from my wife before most people even knew. 

But this time is different. 

There are people who go to church, and there are people who ARE the church. Some people talk a good game with their testimony, while others, a small minority, live the testimony. I do not go to church, or even believe god exists, but if he does, he was exhibited in Buddy Hamm's life. I met Buddy by accident. His church was looking for an artist to paint a mural in their theater room, and someone who knew someone, who knew someone else, who knew me lol, asked if I'd be up for the task. 

From that one job, came more murals and art pieces for their church, my last one was in 2018. Buddy trusted me enough to come by and paint in the evening, and to lock up the doors when I got finished. Every time I saw Buddy, whether he was stressed or behind schedule, he laughed, joked, and found a way to keep things together. When he put on a show for the kids, he. Put. On. A. Show! Entire backdrops and displays, almost Hollywood style, were built for the kids to get them involved in the gospel. 

He once told me, "the world spares no expense in entertaining our children and influencing them, why should we send them to a summer camp that's half-hearted?" And what a show he would put on, every single summer. He'd take my art murals, cut holes in them and connect props to them to make them three dimensional, interactive, and come to life. He refused to accept mediocre art, even if it was going to be on display for one week out of the year. If it was for the kids, he expected it to be topnotch, and yes, excessive at times. Below is just a small snippet of some of the work I did with him. 

Buddy was as sincere as they come. He was warm, friendly, and aways kept a smile. He will definitely be missed, and I'm truly grateful for the opportunity to have met him, and worked in his presence.