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Date: 7/26/2021
SOUTH HADLEY – A scavenger hunt inspired by a popular book character is keeping South Hadley residents entertained and engaged throughout the summer.
Kim Desrochers, who works in the cafeteria of a school, said she came up with the idea for the scavenger hunt after seeing the idea in a gardening group online. “A woman, she did two Waldo bricks that way when kids went through the garden with their parents they’d have something to look for. I thought it was a cute idea,” she said.
From there she said she reached out to people to begin collecting bricks so she could paint them. “I got a ton of bricks,” she said.
It was then another South Hadley resident, Brittania Weatherspoon-North, reached out to see how she could help contribute to Desrochers’ project. “Britt popped in on one of the posts and said if you need any help. That’s how it started,” she said.
From there, the pair posted their project to various community forums on social media where other people contributed locations where the Waldo-themed bricks should be placed. “People would suggest a neighborhood or on their lawn, so I did that and she did that. Some I went around and dropped off by the Big Y gas station, by the school [and] one woman suggested the walkway over by Mount Holyoke,” she said.
She said from there the hunt grew. “It took on its own life,” she said.
Desrochers said both her and Weatherspoon-North have painted multiple sets of bricks. She said she started by painting about 30. “I think maybe I had like 30 and gave Britt like 10. She has three small children, so I didn’t want to give her a ton,” she said.
However, soon both of them had finished their first round and Weatherspoon-North was asking for more bricks to paint. “She did it and asked for another round. She’s working on those and may even be done with them by now,” she said. “I think we have maybe 50 to 60 bricks out there and we’re both working on another woman.”
In addition to working on more bricks themselves, she was encouraging others to paint bricks themselves to participate in the project. “I know I have more bricks available, I’ll probably end up dropping them off. They’re here if people want them, all they have to do is ask. They’re more than welcome to take them if they want,” she said.
She said she had seen some bricks that students had painted popping up around town as part of the hunt. Both Weatherspoon-North and Desrochers said they had experienced people outside of Granby participating in the hunt. “Since there are only two of us painting the bricks, we have been placing them on properties within South Hadley. Though I’ve heard that one of the bricks has been sighted in Granby,” Weatherspoon-North said.
Desrochers said she’d had an appliance delivered by a gentleman who lived in East Hartford, CT, who saw the bricks and was excited to participate. “The guy saw the bricks waiting for people to come grab them, he was so excited about it,” she said.
She said she had seen people around town, young and old participating in the scavenger hunt. “I’ve had a few elderly people, they’re so cute. They come walking up. Old and young alike, it’s just been fun,” she said. “Anyone can participate.”
She said while she initially discouraged people from moving the bricks, she was now excited to see the bricks moving around town. “I initially wanted people to leave them there for a little while so people had the opportunity to find them, now it’s perfectly fine to move them around the neighborhood,” she said. “If they want to take them and move them around, I have no problem with that at all, to kind of keep it going.”
She said people had been posting in community groups when the bricks were found, and encouraged people to begin painting their own bricks. “People are posting in the group when they find them. Some go missing, I know it’s going to happen,” she said. “If people want to start and get going in their own neighborhoods. It’s just acrylic paint. We’ve had tons of rain and it hasn’t bothered the paint at all.”
She said while she’d love to keep the hunt going, she’d save a couple bricks for children at school to look for, but ultimately she did not plan to collect them again when the warm weather ends. “They are where they are, wherever they end up after that is by chance. I’ll definitely probably save some for the schools, as kids start going back to in the fall I’ll put some around the playgrounds and stuff,” she said. “Where they end up is where they end up.”
She said she hoped to continue the tradition next summer. “If people are still talking about it or looking for them I don’t see why not, I’m not going to stop until the people stop,” she said. Desrochers also commended Weatherspoon-North for her help.
“She’s been a tremendous help, I couldn’t have done it without her,” she said. Weatherspoon-North said she’d enjoyed working with Desrochers and hoped people continued to search for the bricks. “It has been a lot of fun painting the bricks and working on this project with Kim and seeing the positive community response,” she said. “I am curious to see how far Waldo will travel. I hope people will continue to post and upload photos on the community page about their own sightings.”
Desrochers said those interested in getting bricks to paint from her should contact her via Facebook.