The Ghost Hawk name is FAR from just two random words on a logo. The name behind our brand carries a lot of meaning and a lot of heart. Simple and plan, Ghost Hawk is a tribute to my brother Danny who passed away in January 2016. For many years, he battled with an opioid addiction. But make no mistake, he was so much more than those demons that took control and eventually claimed his life.

Danny was a very talented musician and artist. He was a son, a brother, an uncle, a cousin, a nephew and a friend to so many. He had many life-long obsessions that included playing music, writing, drawing, comedy and cooking (mainly grilled cheeses). One of his great obsessions since childhood was with a native predatory bird to our area, the Red-Tailed Hawk. This great love and appreciation for these beautiful animals came from our dad, who would teach us about them on deep-woods hiking and camping trips when we were young.

This love continued into his later years. One of his first tattoos was a big hawk on his arm. Years later, he got a second tattoo of a hawk on the other arm - a hawk’s head with “hawk talk” written underneath it - poking fun at literally how much he’d constantly talk to friends and strangers about hawks. One time we went to a falconry exhibition and held these big hawks on our arms. That was incredible.

In the last days of his life, he was in the hospital on life-support. All of his organs were failing, and we made the difficult decision to finally end his suffering. My parents and I held him in our arms as the nurses took out the tubes. He left this world less than a minute later. It was the most surreal experience of my entire life. I left the hospital shortly after, went home and picked up my dog, and took him to a spot where our dad would take us fishing when we were kids.

When I got to the spot, I just stood there staring at the water. Obviously, still in complete shock over what I had been a part of less than an hour earlier. As I stood there reflecting on a lifetime of memories, something caught the corner of my eye. I looked up and saw a Red-Tailed Hawk circling over me above. As if my brother was sending me a sign, saying “I’m still here.” I broke down and cried my eyes out. And since that day, I have been seeing that “ghost hawk” in the strangest and oddly significant times and places to this day. Maybe its coincidence, but I have a hard time believing that. Even since we opened the brewery, we have a hawk that regularly visits us and circles overhead.