By: Contessa Hussong

It’s been said that it’s the little things in life that make us happy — and the painted rocks stashed around Hartford City are no exception. 

Hiding outside businesses or peeking out from the branches of a tree, PD Rocks HC hopes to put a smile on the face of everyone in Hartford City, from the truly young to the truly young at heart.

It all started, however, with a painted Cracker Barrel duck.

“My sister Pam found this cute little duck painted on a rock at Cracker Barrel in Gas City one day when she went to pick up some food,” said Debra Whitesell Wilson, co-founder of the PD Rocks HC Facebook page. “(Pamela) got a hold of me and asked me if I would like to paint some rocks and leave them around the city,” she said. “We talked about it and we thought that would be so fun because we wanted to leave them in places where children would find them.”

The hide-and-seek game isn’t just for kids, though.

As more and more people have posted pictures with the rocks Wilson and her sister, Pamela Whitesell (the respective “P” and “D” of PD Rocks HC), hand-painted, they’ve found adults, too, have joined in on the fun.

One Facebook poster found and re-hid rocks outside a local grocery store. Others simply comment on old pictures, the joy of the finder spreading to viewers as well.

This kindness initiative isn’t only taking place in Blackford, however.

One Kentucky family found a rock at Burnside Island Campground, left there by a Hartford City family who carried it with them. Painted with a scarecrow (dubbed “Barney” by his young finder), this inter-state stone is one of the furthest traveling rocks that PD Rocks HC has created.

Despite the distance, the broader audience has allowed the small initiative to focus their message. In addition to painting characters or animals on rocks, or even following seasonal themes, the artists wrote words of encouragement. 

One, painted pink with the words, “You matter,” has been found and re-hidden multiple times over the past year, according to a Facebook post and picture documenting the rock’s journey.

Other rocks encourage students to “Thank a teacher” or a bus driver and to “laugh more.”

But for Wilson, the messages she receives are better than those she sends through her rock hiding hobby.

Dozens of posts on the PD Rocks HC Facebook page provide similar testaments.

“My daughter was super excited to find this around the square today! Thank you for your kindness,” Mary Abbott Hile posted mid-August.

Other users posted about how their day was made by finding a rock, or how excited their children (or themselves, from time to time) were to make the discovery.

Almost without fail, at the bottom of each post, came a reply from Wilson herself, liking updates, thanking them for finding, or offering encouragement as rocks have made it as far as Brown County, Richmond, Peru, and even Kentucky as non-natives pass through.

“We’re always asking people to share,” Wilson said. “That brings a smile to our face(s).”

As people have shared in the finding, however, Wilson also noted that some community members have joined her in painting rocks. These painters are presently unknown, but their impact is joining a kindness initiative Wilson hopes to continue.

For now, Whitesell is sticking to her usual process, painting her rocks with acrylic paint markers according to whatever season Hartford City may be entering. At times, she even takes her inspiration from the rock itself.

“Some rocks have a natural heart shape to it, and so that’s what you want to paint it as,” she said. “It’s something that goes with the flow.”

Dropping off the rocks around Hartford City has, at times, mingled sadness with joy. 

Growing up in Blackford County, Whitesell only left her hometown when her job moved her and her family to Michigan. Recently returning after a 10-year absence, she’s been saddened by the downturn that’s occurred. 

“There have been times when we have definitely looked at . . . how run-down parts of the city are, and it’s hard to believe that people live in some of the homes that we see,” Whitesell said.  “It just brings sadness to us.” 

It only makes the rocks she leaves behind more meaningful however — because sometimes, it really is the little things in life that can make someone’s day.