Mina Starsiak Hawk Talks ‘Grief’ After the Loss of a ‘Cherished Friend’

Heavy/Youtube/The Jason Show Mina Starsiak Hawk

HGTV’s “Good Bones” host Mina Starsiak Hawk has faced a fair deal of loss and heartbreak in her life and is remembering a late friend of her and her husband Steve Hawk’s in a Wednesday, April 5 Instagram post.

“9 years ago to the day is when the world lost Drew, Steve’s most cherished friend. Only a year after me even getting to know him. He’s a man that at no one could ever replace, yet there I was… trying…for my husband,” Mina wrote in her post’s caption, “Since that day, as most of you know, we’ve also lost Steve’s parents and younger sister, leaving the most gaping wounds one can imagine.”

The designer and renovator has previously opened up about some of the losses in her life on her podcast, “Mina AF”, and wrote that based on listener response, she wants to record a follow-up, putting out the call for fan questions on the topic of grief.

Steve Hawk Lost His Friend Drew in 2015

As the couple recounted on the “Dealing with Grief” episode of “Mina AF”, Mina had only been dating Steve for about a year when Drew passed away in 2015. Prior to the pair dating, Steve and Drew were childhood friends and later roommates, and Steve said “We were like a pair, that’s just how we were known”. Mina and Steve described him as a “unique soul”.

Drew died in April 2015 after a car accident, with Mina and Steve sparing further details.

“Not only was it this massive trauma in your life,” Mina said, “[But for me] it was ‘How do I support you in this time?’ when we were still so new,” Mina remembers being terrified for her husband, and “selfishly” for herself as she had no idea how best to help console her then-fiancé through this unimaginable loss.

The couple has remembered and honored Drew in multiple ways throughout their life, including naming their daughter Charlotte “Charlie” Drew, after him, as well as displaying his football jersey at their wedding, which took place just over a year after Drew’s passing. The couple spoke on “Mina AF” about how delicate the planning process behind their wedding was, as they wanted to honor their friend while also still pushing forward with the wedding ceremony, but they both agreed that the photos with his jersey are some of their favorites from the day.

Steve has also organized a charity golf outing in his friend’s name, raising over $100,000 over the years, which Mina says “gave you [and your friends] a purpose [and] a time where he was honored,” which helped them not “get lost in the grief” and channel it into something productive.

Mina Starsiak Hawk Took in Her Niece for 9 Months

After their wedding and honeymoon, Mina and Steve kept busy when they took in Mina’s sister’s infant daughter, Julie. The two made reference to this on the “Mina AF” episode, and People reported that Mina said, “Julie lived with us for about nine months while my sister figured out her stuff,” but by December 2017 Julie was “back with her [mother] and she seems to be doing well so it’s really good.”

This time spent caring for Julie helped prepare Mina and Steve for their eventual family, with Mina telling People, “When I was younger I wanted six kids, but I think we’d be good with two,” a statement which ended up coming true as the couple welcomed their first child, a son Jack, in August 2018, and after facing infertility issues was able to welcome their daughter, Charlie, in September 2020.

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