MONTVALE—Hannah Foley has rocked her Girl Scout Silver Award. This is the highest award that can be attained by a Girl Scout Cadette, and it required more than 50 hours of dedication.
Every minute paid off. Hannah has created a touchstone, mental health support, community art project, elementary school campus focal point, and self-renewing tradition, all in one.
Just the right large rock, just the right message, just the right arrangement of mums, and just the right location. And it came together at just the right time.
In a world gone virtual, this is something real, she told Pascack Press on Oct. 12. “From family and friends and teachers, kids in my community as a whole, I’ve just noticed people from, like, the loss of loved ones, it’s just a depressing time. People haven’t been as happy or positive as usual. And the feedback I’m getting is that this definitely helps.”
Hannah interviewed leaders of the community and learned that mental health was a growing concern, especially in the wake of Covid-19 lockdown. And so, to lift spirits and encourage kindness, “Operation Feel Good” was born.
Hannah set to work to locate and decorate a large stone that could be sited someplace prominent in the community — someplace where it would work wonders as an anchor and a familiar, friendly presence.
Her plan was to paint a colorful, succinct, and powerful statement for the benefit of kids and adults alike, and focused on a message of hope. She looked within and found it: “Trust the journey”
After speaking with Montvale Schools Superintendent Darren Petersen, and pitching her idea to the Board of Education — which approved — Hannah got to work.
And now a large, bright yellow stone — all 4 feet and 700–800 pounds of it — graces the front of Memorial Elementary School. Its message, in complementary cool colors and floral embellishments: “Trust the Journey.”
In order that the project be self-sustaining — a requirement of the Silver Award — Hannah, Memorial Elementary School Principal Erik Parks, and vice president Steven Pellegrino settled on a plan to allow each year’s fourth-grade class to redecorate the rock with an uplifting sentiment of their own.
Naturally, a picture of each class rock will be preserved for posterity in the school. This display will tell an ongoing story of the life and times of Montvale.
Hannah’s scout leaders said she demonstrated strong organizational skills, dedicated community outreach, and devotion of herself and her good attitude in completing this project.
Donations included those of Jumpin’ Jim’s Inflatables of Montvale (paint and supplies), Park Ave Landscape and Mason Supply of Park Ridge and Downes Tree Service (the boulder, mulch, and mums), and High Sierra Landscaping.
Hannah, a Pascack Hills High School freshman, told Pascack Press that she’s involved in clubs and sports, and that she’s been scouting since kindergarten. She credits scouting to a lifetime of friendships and happy memories.
Of her project, she said “It was just an honor that I had the ability to do this and that my community got to see it.”
She said feedback has been positive. “People tell me it makes them smile and how nice it was that someone was looking out for a mental health booster.”
And the school setting makes it all the more perfect for her. “I thought it was a nice thing to do when all the teachers and all the students came back to school. It was something to look forward to that was new and bright.”
Hannah is the daughter of two particularly community-minded parents: Jim and Alisha Foley are police officers. Alisha is lieutenant with the Montvale Police Department, and Jim is a sergeant with the Woodcliff Lake Police Department. (He retired, after 30 years, in July 2020.)
Alisha told Pascack Press on Oct. 11, “Hannah is a real special person. I know she is our daughter, but she is uniquely thoughtful, especially for a 14-year-old young woman. She always thinks more about others than she does herself, and would go out of her way for anyone in need.”
She said, “Hannah’s Silver Award project was a perfect example of what she stands for: integrity, hard work, and optimism.”
And, she said, “Our family is devoted to service and we are proud to say that she has absorbed that idealism. In a world that finds fault in most things, Hannah chooses to find joy in giving back.”