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Date: 9/29/2020
AGAWAM – An Agawam resident is working to bring joy to residents in a small way: by painting rocks and hiding them in the community to be found.
Jen Baginski said she began the Agawam Rock Club in February after the passing of her brother in December. Her brother, she said, loved nature and children, so Baginsai set out to honor his memory and “spread kindness throughout the community.”
Baginski said she first started by hiding rocks in a few places. When people found those rocks, she said, the group started to grow. “It got bigger and bigger, everybody loves it, there’s so much positive response from the community. It’s just awesome to see. People post they had a bad day and they saw a rock, and it meant so much to them,” she said. “It makes me feel good about starting this, knowing my brother will be proud.”
Now the Facebook group, Agawam Rocks, has more than 800 members and is continuing to grow. Baginski said the group has been working to paint rocks as a group. “We’ve done a few different programs. We did a together project where we placed together rocks across town on a certain date, [and] we had a blue rock and painted a red heart on it. We had a lot of those around town,” she said.
The group’s next project will take place on Oct. 2. The purpose, Baginsai said is to “share 100 smiles.”
“Each member, they’ll paint 100 smiley face rocks,” she explained. After the rocks have been painted, on Oct. 2, the group will meet between 5:15 and 5:30 p.m. at the Agawam Senior Center. There, Baginski explained, they will create a large heart using the smiley face rocks.
“We’re going to place all our rocks in a giant heart on Main Street for the weekend,” she said.
Baginski said she hopes the project will continue to spread kindness within the community. “We want to help the community. There’s a lot of negativity and this might cheer up a bunch of people,” she said. “We just like to spread kindness and hope.”
Baginski said she’s been impressed watching both adults and children in Agawam shine through their artistic abilities. “There’s so many kids that just love it, and the artistic ability of these children is amazing,” she said.
She said she’s received positive feedback from all who have participated. “I’ve gotten positive feedback from families. They go for hikes, and find and hide rocks,” she said. “Adults find comfort and peace and relax.”
However, she emphasized there are rules to the rock hunt. While an extensive list of the rules can be found on the Agawam Rocks Facebook page, Baginski said one of the most significant rules is that those participating can’t just keep any rock they find. “If you see one, you can take one for inspiration if it means something to you. You can take one to give to someone else for motivation,” she said. “And all the rest we like to re-hide and all our artists like to see our rocks being found.”
She said it was “awesome that people are posting the rocks they find now,” and that one of the most fun parts of this was simply seeing where your rocks would end up. “It’s pretty cool to see how far your rocks end up,” she said.
While there are some people in West Springfield that participate, Baginski said the rock hiding stays in town. “I’m trying to do Agawam, there are a few people from Westside. We just have to hide them all in Agawam and keep them here,” she said. “I know Enfield has their own rock club, but this one is just for Agawam.”