LAUGHIn March 2017, Susan Happel
Bohrnstedt tragically lost her 19-year-
old son Benjamin Parker. As his 20th
birthday on the 9th of September
approached, she found herself
increasingly withdrawn and anxious
about how she and her family would
honour his life.
Then, she came across a Facebook
post for “EvansvilleRocks!”, a group of
people in her town of Evansville,
Indiana, who paint and then hide
rocks to bring happiness to others. She
joined and after a few weeks of seeing
all the joy being shared, Susan
decided this was the way she would
honour her son. On Ben’s birthday,
“my family and I got together, shared
stories, laughed, cried and painted 20
rocks. Most had special meanings, and
all were painted with love”, she says.
A MOTHER’S TRIBUTE
Susan did not expect “Rocks4Ben”,
as she calls the painted rocks, to have
had such a wide impact. People from
Evansville have taken the rocks on
their travels around the world.
“I can’t even explain how awesome
it is to see a photo of a rock I painted
in Evansville, Indiana sitting on the
steps of the Sydney Opera House, in
front of the Great Pyramid in Egypt or
mortared into the doorway of a family
home in the Dominican Republic.”
She adds: “In painting rocks I’ve
found healing, inspiration and, some
days, a purpose—a reason to keep
moving forward. There is peace
because Ben is with me as I paint.
Each rock is a tribute to him, and his
name is on the back of every one.”by marco marcellineGOOD
NEWS
from around
the Worldxxxxxx144 • DECEMBER 2021