CLARKS SUMMIT — A group of girls in the Abingtons are determined to lift people’s spirits and spread kindness by designing and distributing unique and inspiring handwritten notes in their community and beyond.
The girls’ mission started shortly after Rebecca Haggerty, the mom of Zoë, 20, Charlotte, 15, and Lilly, 13, passed away in April 2018 nearly a year after being diagnosed with an aggressive glioblastoma, a form of brain cancer.
“She would always tell me, my sisters and my family to ‘build people up, don’t tear them down,’” Zoë Haggerty said. “That was her whole life, really, the way she treated people with kindness and love.
“Her whole goal in life was taking care of other people.”
According to Zoë, although the cancer had an effect on her mom’s speech, it didn’t change her outlook.
“The medicine and surgery kind of made her speak and talk a little bit differently,” Zoë said. “She started calling everybody ‘folks’ which we thought was really cute and funny. If one of us had a bad day or needed a little encouragement, she’d always say ‘build up, folks. Find some positives and be kind to other people.’”
The Haggerty sisters, who reside in Clarks Green, joined forces with two friends — Zoe Detter, 15, and Allie Detter, 14, and their mom, Judy Detter, all of Clarks Summit, to carry on Rebecca’s legacy by lifting others up.
“We put our heads together and started talking about a way that we could keep my mom’s message going and spread it in memory of her,” Zoë Haggerty said. “That’s how #BuildUp was born.”
The group embarked on its first Build Up outing in September 2018. The girls wrote kind, inspirational messages and left them on car windshields during mass at The Church of St. Gregory and waited around to watch the reactions.
According to Zoe Detter, seeing the joy in people’s faces when they find a note makes the project very rewarding.
“Our favorite part is seeing people receive the messages,” she said. “I think it made all of our days when we stayed in the car at St. Gregory’s. We were giggling and they were taking pictures and showing their friends. That really meant a lot to all of us.”
A trip to Geisinger Community Medical Center in November was memorable for Zoë Haggerty.
“It was pretty chilly and we went around the parking garage and placed as many cards as we possibly could,” she said. “We saw some people come out and they looked tired and upset. Then, they’d pick up the little card and automatically look a little bit happier.”
In today’s era of text messaging, Snapchat, and FaceTime, Zoë Haggerty feels there is something special about a handwritten note.
“I think it’s helpful to have something tangible that you can look at it, hold and keep,” she said. “I have a couple (notes) that my sisters and Mrs. Detter wrote that I keep in my car, on my dashboard, so I can look at them sometimes when I’m driving.”
The Haggertys always take time to spread the group’s message whenever they are traveling to other places.
“My sisters and I have relatives in Maryland, so when we go down to visit them, we take the notes with us,” Zoë said. “My sisters and I also went to London and France, and we spread a couple there as well, so we’re international now.”
Each member of the group wears a white T-shirt with the phrase “Build Up Folks” displayed on the front in lavender, Rebecca Haggerty’s favorite color.
“She’s with us every time we go out,” Judy Detter said.
Detter estimates the group has left 1,000 messages so far. She encourages people who have received notes to comment on the Build Up Facebook page and the_buildup_project page on Instagram.
Zoë Haggerty, a student at The University of Scranton, remembers her mother fondly when crafting and distributing messages.
“It helps us honor her and be happy that she taught us to treat others so kindly and care so much about other people,” she said.
Expanding the mission
Charlotte Haggerty and Zoe Detter hope to start a #BuildUp club next year when their sisters, Lilly and Allie, get to Abington Heights High School.
“Some of our friends heard about it and asked if they could be part of it,” Charlotte said. “We’re trying to get as many people as we can.”
