For nearly 30 years, Southlake Sister Cities has been aiming to connect families and children to others in Japan and China. But after COVID-19 shut down travel around the world, Southlake Sister Cities pivoted to more localized efforts. Now teaming up with the city’s community services department, Southlake Sister Cities looks to bring the community together through a new park initiative called Rocks For Peace.
Grapevine And Guinness World Records
During the start of the pandemic in March 2020, Grapevine residents Ron Olsen and Chris Penny started a painted rock trail in Parr Park to lift the community’s spirit during a period of unrest and uncertainty. The rock art trail ended up drawing artists from all over the world, growing to 24,459 painted rocks and winning the Guinness World Record for Largest Display of Painted Pebbles.
After seeing what Grapevine was growing, Southlake Sister Cities President Katy Hintze felt inspired to start their own rock art trail in Southlake.
“We thought it was such a positive, neat and upbeat idea,” Katy says. “Since we’re in the middle of COVID and can’t do any trips, we really wanted to give our students some more volunteer activities they could participate in locally.”
Building Bridges
Once Southlake Sister Cities told the city it was interested in starting its own rock art trail, the city looked at areas where it could begin. Eventually, Southlake Sister Cities planted its pebbles in an 800-foot pathway alongside Field Drive in Bob Jones Park that would have the space needed to sustain its growth.
Southlake Sister Cities formally launched the trail in late September and hosted kickoff events where families came out and painted their own rocks for the trail. Katy says they’ve added over 150 painted rocks to the trail in just its first week.
“We wanted to connect the community,” Katy says. “This is a way for them to be creative, put their positive messages out there and build bridges between people.”
Connecting Through Creativity
With the Southlake Sister Cities trips still on hold at the moment, Katy says she knows firsthand how hard the past year has been on families everywhere. That’s why she feels it’s more important than ever to stay connected in the small ways we can be.
“I think we’ve all been cooped up a little too much these past couple of years,” she says. “I hope this rock art trail brings people outside to have something to look forward to.”
So whether you bring a painted rock from home or paint one at a future community event, the Rocks For Peace program embodies Southlake Sister Cities’ mission of fostering connection through creativity.
“When people come out, they want to come out and find their beautiful rocks alongside others that have been painted,” Katy says. “It’s meant to be something that makes you feel good — gives you a little bit of a smile and makes you feel like you’re a part of something larger than yourself. We’re just getting started.”