CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Little crocheted hearts have been spotted around the Coastal Bend and its not by accident.
That's because they're from thePeyton Heart Project (PHP), a non-profit organization created in 2015. The organization was inspired by several stories including that of 13 year old, Peyton James, who died by suicide in 2014.
According to the organization, Peyton experienced several years of bullying by his friends. Co-founders Jill Kubin and Sue Harris contacted Peyton’s father, David James, and was given permission to name the project after his son. The three have been working together ever since to share their message with the world.
In 2019, The Peyton Heart Project became an official non-profit organization. Now, PHP has spanned across 70 countries.
As a way to symbolize the delicate lives that were lost, the organization crotchets handmade hearts. But these hearts are not just made with yarn and crochet needles, there's love woven into every stitch.
“This project is our way of helping or our way of reaching out to people that may be struggling with those issues," Alayna Lopez, Miss Jim Wells County 2022 said.
Lopez and several other girls connected with the Peyton Heart Project as a community service opportunity through the Jim Wells County Fair Pageant. Many of them agreed together that suicide and mental health is a problem that's often overlooked.
"Victims of bullying tend to get told to suck it up or to grow thicker skin," JWCFP participant Yesenia Cabrera said. "I think that it’s important to let those victims of bullying know that they’re seen and heard."
Now, through their efforts to show people that they're not alone, the Peyton Heart Project is pumping through the Coastal Bend. But they aren't the only ones.
There are dozens of others supporting the non-profit organization throughout Texas, including supporters from Houston, Dallas, Rockport, Dripping Springs, Humble, Austin and more.
The pageant ladies have placed several of the crocheted hearts near school campuses, grocery stores, gas pumps and even parked cars.
Ms. Alma Olvera is the creative hands behind the ones seen around Jim Wells County and Nueces County.
“It makes me feel good because when I started in 2015, we scattered them randomly, anywhere in public places. I put one in the post office and somebody picked it up and they had thoughts of taking their life," Olvera said.
In 2001, Olvera lost her brother to suicide and ever since, she's made it her mission to help others who are suffering.
“He was in the Air Force. And it’s hard to receive a call from your sister in law and then have to go tell your parents," she said.
She said she's handmade more than 30,000 hearts, attaching inspirational quotes on each one. When she first started she gave her first heart to someone at the post office after he mentioned taking his own life.
She said she still stays in touch with him to make sure he knows he has a friend. She said helping with the non-profit organization has kept her going throughout her grieving.
The ladies, along with the Peyton Heart Project said they hope these gestures leave people with a feeling that there is still good in the world. Even with the tiniest heart, spreading love can go a long way.
If you receive a heart around town, be sure to post a photo on social media and tag #PeytonHeartProject, along with the city/state/country you're living in.
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