The Peyton Heart Project, based out of New Jersey, is a mission to raise awareness about suicide and bullying, and help end the stigma surrounding mental health issues.
The project is named in honor of 13-year-old Peyton James, who killed himself nearly one year ago as a result of being bullied by his classmates for having red hair and freckles.
His father, David James, wanted to keep Peyton’s name alive by starting Products for Peyton, a charity that collects travel/hotel sized toiletries to donate to the Ronald McDonald House and other charities.
Through Facebook, Products for Peyton reached Jill Qubin, who started The Peyton Heart Project with her daughter.
In order to raise awareness, people all around the country knit hearts with a message of kindness attached and scatter the hearts in public areas, school campuses being big targets.
Anonymous individuals place these hearts around campus for students like freshman education major Harper Panter to find.
“I was really surprised to see a heart hanging from the door to my room,” Panter said. “The message attached to it made my day because I thought, ‘Wow. If these hearts are all over campus, then someone who needs to read something like this will.’”
Once Panter found the heart, she showed it to her roommate, freshman biology and math major Savannah Culver, who posted the heart on social media.
“I looked up the hashtag on the message to see what the Peyton Heart Project was all about,” Culver said. “I shared a picture of the heart, because I wanted to help spread the message of kindness because seeing that picture could change someone’s day for the better.”
Through the power of social media, the Peyton Heart Project has reached all 50 states and more than 20 countries, such as Australia, England, New Zealand and Chile.
“It’s amazing to see all of these hearts being spread literally all over the world because of social media,” James said. “Social media, in this case, has the power to change lives. By posting a picture of a heart, kindness is spreading and awareness is spreading as well.”
According to the University’s Counseling Center website, four out of five people who commit suicide have attempted it before and eight out of 10 people have verbally expressed their interest in committing suicide.
If you or someone you know is considering committing suicide, you can contact the Counseling Center or call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline.
