The Purple Rock Project memorialized over 100 people from over 25 states. Photo by Carole Trottere
Purple Rock Project Gets Requests From More Than 25 States
The Purple Rock Project recently placed more than 100 memorial rocks in a Long Island park to honor people from more than 25 different states in the country who were lost to the opioid/fentanyl epidemic. The names on the rocks were read aloud in a ceremony that was livestreamed.
When a parent loses a child to substance use disorder, the pain and grief are nearly inconsolable. Who would think that a purple rock with their child’s name and face on it could bring comfort? But it does, according to Carole Trottere, the “rock lady.”
The Purple Rock Project, a movement, started several years ago when Trottere participated in a press conference to illustrate the tremendous number of overdose deaths that were occurring on Long Island. Together with then Suffolk County Legislator Kara Hahn, the two of them used rocks taken from a local north shore beach, painted them purple, and added names and photos of nearly 75 loved ones lost to opioids and fentanyl. The rocks were then placed in the Suffolk County Environmental Center in Islip, where a section of the park is called Gabriel’s Giving Tree Memorial Park.
“Once in a while, people would ask me to make a rock for a lost loved one, and I also joined with the Suffolk County Police Department to help with the distribution of Narcan,” said Trottere. “We would go to street fairs, farmers’ markets, and other events and be side by side. People got Narcan, and if they lost someone to substances, they would come over and write on a purple rock. It’s just a rock, but it carries love, memory, and the message that our children mattered.”
Over the past few years, dozens of rocks continued to be placed at the park. Then, The Purple Rock Project went to Washington, D.C. for a national event called The Trail of Truth, an art installation and gathering of people from across the country who have lost children and loved ones to the opioid crisis.
“Once the Purple Rock Project got mentioned on the Trail of Truth’s Facebook page, my social media exploded with requests for rocks,” says Trottere. “I started saying that unless you are coming to DC, I am sorry I cannot make one for you, but then when I returned from Washington, I knew that I had to take this on.”
Trottere knew that a small gesture like a rock would mean something to a parent who had lost a child, because she is one of those parents. Her son Alex died from a fentanyl poisoning seven years ago.
So she started sorting through the requests, keeping track of names, dates, photos, and home states. She recruited help from other members of Gabriel’s Giving Tree, Paulette Phillippe, Lori Carbonaro, and Claudia Friszell.
“I was very clear with everyone to say that I cannot mail the rock to you. I do not have a trust fund. But I will respectfully place the rock in a Long Island memorial park. Everyone was okay with this. So I started lugging rocks up 60 steps from the beach.
“They cannot be small rocks,” she explained. “They have to be big enough to fit a photo and some text. Every day I bring some up, paint them, then start the top-secret Purple Rock Process. When completed, I email the people a photo of the rock.”
“The comments that I have gotten from parents are so moving and heartfelt that I know that this undertaking is worth every second that we spend on it.”
Many people from across the country have asked how to start a Purple Rock Project in their area, and so Trottere has created a short video to guide them through the steps.
“It’s not rocket science, and anyone can do it, and I think rocks are available anywhere. I am fortunate to live on the north shore, and I thank that glacier that dropped them all here.”
For more information, visit The Purple Rock Project on Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/p/The-Purple-Rock-Project-61552503092645/
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