Days of our Lives star Susan Seaforth Hayes marks the first anniversary of Bill Hayes' death

Days of our Lives legend Susan Seaforth Hayes brought fans to tears in December when Julie delivered an on-air eulogy for her husband, Doug Williams, that mirrored the eulogy Seaforth Hayes gave for her real-life husband, Bill Hayes, who played Doug since 1970.

On January 12, 2025, one year had passed since Hayes' death at the age of 98, something that did not go unnoticed by his widow.

Susan Seaforth Hayes honors her husband

Seaforth Hayes took to Instagram to share a special photo of herself and her husband, along with a short note about the day.

"Today is the first anniversary of Billy‘s passing. The sun came out and the winds decreased over sad Los Angeles," the actress wrote, mentioning the winds that have fueled Los Angeles wildfires. "I made myself a poached egg — Billy‘s favorite breakfast. His light still shines on me and all who knew him, near and far.

"Lives end, stories finish…but the love they bring holds us all together, even through time itself," Seaforth Hayes continued. "And what a light was Mr. Hayes."

Multiple DAYS co-stars sent Seaforth Hayes well wishes, including Kristian Alfonso (Hope Brady), Deidre Hall (Marlena Evans), Martha Madison (Belle Black), Paul Telfer (Xander Kiriakis), and Mary Beth Evans (Kayla Johnson).

A week prior, Seaforth Hayes shared an old photo from the Horton living room of herself, her husband, and Frances Reid as Alice Horton. The trio are posing by the famed Horton Christmas tree.

"A Christmas treasure," Seaforth Hayes wrote. "Found this picture in Billy’s collected photos. Standing, happily, between two icons of Salem days. Are they watching over me now?"

A long Days of our Lives legacy

Hayes was a DAYS mainstay for more than half a century and met his wife on the set when Julie Olson was paired with newcomer Doug Williams. The Hayeses created the first soap opera supercouple with Doug and Julie and graced the cover of TIME Magazine on January 12, 1976, exactly 48 years before Bill Hayes' death.

When DAYS honored Hayes after Doug died on-screen on Thanksgiving, the soap brought back old favorites to share their favorite memories of Doug while Seaforth Hayes gave a mesmerizing performance as Doug's widow. Fans were treated to stories and flashbacks that brought back fond memories of a character and actor we knew so well.

Catch all-new episodes of Days of our Lives weekdays on Peacock.