ANDERSON — Alexandria resident Shelby Anderson sang on the Town Center Park stage Saturday night in front of hundreds of people, but she hopes to soon be singing in a New York City recording studio.
Anderson showcased her singing and guitar-playing talents during the Stephen Hamer Benefit Concert for the Make-A-Wish Foundation on Saturday. A future Make-A-Wish recipient herself after being diagnosed last year with Hodgkin’s lymphoma, Anderson’s dream is to record an album at the Sony BMG studio.
“I love music,” said Anderson, who hopes to record original songs and possibly some covers. “It’s a nice thing that (Make-A-Wish workers) do for somebody.”
Anderson resident Tom Hamer agreed. Hamer’s son, Stephen Hamer, died from Ewing’s sarcoma, a form of bone cancer, in 2001 when he was 18.
Stephen Hamer received his wish to play golf at Pebble Beach Golf Links in California from Make-A-Wish. He also met golf pro Tiger Woods through the foundation. Tom Hamer has spent the past eight years trying to give back to the organization that he said helped his son through some of his worst moments.
“He would think about playing golf at Pebble Beach and it gave him a reason to keep fighting,” Tom Hamer said. “One of the organizations that was dear to his heart was the Make-A-Wish Foundation.”
Tom Hamer put together the benefit concert in memory of his son to raise money for Make-A-Wish. The last two years of the concert have raised a total of $50,000, he said. This year’s goal was to raise as much as possible with a motorcycle ride and concert that featured bands Nuthin’ Fancy, Forte and Crowfield.
Levi and Julie Cox and their downtown Anderson bar, Kroakerheads, are instrumental in putting together the concert, Tom Hamer said. Levi Cox knew Stephen Hamer from years of coaching Little League.
“It was wonderful knowing Stephen,” he said. “He was a wonderful young man. There’s nothing better in this world than making a kid happy. It’s a passion for us.”
Make-A-Wish representative Emily Foreman said events like the Hamer concert help the organization grant wishes and create community awareness. The foundation grants wishes to children between 2-and-a-half and 18 with life-threatening medical conditions.
Wishes can come from four categories: to go, to be, to meet or to have, Foreman said.
Memories of Stephen Hamer’s granted wish stayed with him until the day he died, his father said.
“By the time he played at Pebble Beach, we already knew he wasn’t going to live much longer,” Tom Hamer said. “Up until his last week of living, he would talk about Pebble Beach.”
Contact Aleasha Sandley: 640-4805, aleasha.sandley @heraldbulletin.com.
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