YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio (WKBN) — The loss of a Valley woman who was missing for almost five years before her remains were found in Youngstown is still being felt in the community — and now, through lyrics.
“She was definitely a wildflower,” said Maria Catone of her best friend, Amy Hambrick.
In November 2017, 29-year-old Hambrick went missing. It wouldn’t be until September 2022 that Youngstown police would identify bones found in the woods on Youngstown’s East Side as hers. Shortly after, family and friends had planned a memorial service for Hambrick.
Catone made wildflower seed packages for the service, with some lyrics on the packets. She then sent them to her friend, country musician Robert Weston, to get his thoughts.
“I thought, ‘You know what? I’m going to turn it into a song,'” Weston said. “So I just got my guitar and looked at her lines, connected a few dots and turned a few things around and made it into a song.”
The song became a reality, with Hambrick’s daughter Jaden even designing the cover.
“In the song, it says, ‘The mountains and the rolling hills,’ so I put the mountains with the sunset and a river with some flowers, of course,” said Jaden-McKay.
Hambrick’s friends and family hope this song brings awareness — not just to her case, but to cases similar to hers.
“I just hope that somebody hears it. Somebody knows there’s other people out there hurting. There’s people looking for answers always. It’s not just particularly Amy. There’s thousands of people missing,” Catone said.
They also hope it may lead to answers.
“In a situation like this, there’s a lot of emotions and a lot of negative feelings, but this song also looks back on the good times,” Weston said.
The song “Wildflower” can be found on YouTube or most streaming platforms.
