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Hills family paint rocks to spread joy around Sittingbourne

You must have a heart of stone if this rock idea doesn’t put a smile on your face.

People across Sittingbourne have been painting pebbles and stones with positive messages and colourful images and leaving them for others to find.

It’s an idea started by Tina Hills, who saw similar projects in other places and decided to start up a group in the area.

Kyle Hills, nine, with Mum, Tina and brother Toby, seven
Kyle Hills, nine, with Mum, Tina and brother Toby, seven

The Milton Regis mum said: “I first saw it on Facebook on a group called Love on the Rocks UK and it’s big in Southend and America already.

“I set a group up here and I’ve now got 402 members.”

When a rock is found it can either be kept or re-hidden for someone else to discover.

The 32-year-old said the idea is to make people smile, adding: “There are so many bad things going on in the world at the moment.”

The family have painted rocks and plan to hide them around Sttingbourne
The family have painted rocks and plan to hide them around Sttingbourne

The group on Facebook, called Sittingbourne Rocks, is filled with people who have found the creations across the town.

They then post photos to find out who hid them.

Designs range from rainbows, to trees, and messages such as: “Don’t let anyone dull your sparkle.”

Tina, who works as a dinner lady at Milton Court Primary Academy, said: “I’m not usually crafty but I’ve done about 50 so far, I’ve become a bit obsessed, one of them took about three hours.”

The family are hoping to make strangers smile in Sittingbourne
The family are hoping to make strangers smile in Sittingbourne

She’s even started getting recognised as “the lady hiding all the rocks” by passers-by who noticed the stones in her garden.

Her boys, Kyle, nine, and Toby, seven, have both been getting involved in decorating the creations, which she said gets them off spending all their time on the computer.

She added: “It doesn’t matter if you’re not good at drawing, a smiley face is all it takes”.

Some of the best places to search for the painted pebbles at the moment are Milton Creek Country Park and Sittingbourne High Street.

If you find a stone or want to get involved, visit the Sittingbourne Rocks Facebook page.

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