An amazing duo of cape-less superheroes will emerge at Sand Creek Middle School to show students and educators how they can spread HOPE (Hold On, Possibilities Exist) in their classrooms—and beyond.
Tom Murphy and Rick Yarosh, of Sweethearts & Heroes, a student empowerment and empathy activation team that aims to prevent bullying and suicide, will work with the Sand Creek Msecondddle School community on Friday, Jan. 20. The media is invited to attend the 5th and 6th-grade presentation at 12:45 p.m.
Offering a profound, engaging signature presentation that calls for HOPE, empathy, and Action, the Sweethearts & Heroes team is comprised of Murphy, director, of St. Albans, Vt.; Yarosh, a retired U.S. Army sergeant, HOPE expert, and motivational speaker from New York who was burned severely while serving in Iraq; and Pat Fish, an aspiring young leader who first saw Sweethearts & Heroes as a student in South Glens Falls, N.Y.
“We’re thrilled to be working in schools again for the 2022-2023 school year, and we’re honored that our friends and colleagues in the South Colonie Central School District have invited us back to visit Sand Creek Middle School,” said Murphy, whose team last visited the district in 2018. “The most recent national data tells us that student anxiety and hopelessness are still on the rise — a trend that was escalating before COVID hit — so our work at Sand Creek is crucial.”
“The Sand Creek school community has really been prioritizing social and emotional wellness this school year,” said associate principal Mr. Vardaro. “So we are really looking forward to Sweet Hearts & Heroes’ inspirational message to students to reinforce empathy and awareness of how others are feeling emotionally.”
For more than 15 years, Sweethearts & Heroes has presented what Murphy calls “‘the ‘stop, drop and roll’ of bullying” to more than 2 million students in school districts from New England to Hawaii. Murphy said, “We go where we’re needed. That’s what heroes do.”
For more information on Sweethearts & Heroes, visit sweetheartsandheroes.com.