Dismay as lifesaving notes torn down from city bridges
‘THE PEOPLE WHO ARE DOING IT HAVE NEVER BEEN IN THAT SITUATION’
A DERBY man who has been trying to spreading messages of hope across the city has been left upset and confused by someone repeatedly tearing down his heartwarming notes.
Rocco Hawkins made a name for himself when he began to leave handwritten notes of support on Derby’s bridges to help those who might be struggling with mental health.
The Derby dad’s altruistic actions, which prompted a surge of local support, were inspired by his own struggles with mental illness which led him at one point to attempt to take his own life.
When Rocco discovered the laminated notes had been torn off of some bridges, he went to replace them, only to return a few days later to discover the same thing had happened.
The notes he leaves behind include motivational quotes, messages of support and a handwritten letter in which he urges the reader to see there is still hope.
The 37-year-old said: “There’s a specific bridge in Chaddesden that I put the quotes on and two days later every quote was ripped down. I knew it wasn’t to do with the weather and it happened on all the bridges.
“I rang the council and asked them if it’s anything to do with them but they said no. I don’t understand whether it’s children or whether it’s somebody that just doesn’t agree with it. It could be a member of the public who thinks it’s classed as graffiti. “Someone might even think it’s not helpful, and it could have a disadvantage but it doesn’t because I’ve received all the messages saying how much it has helped people.
“It is really upsetting because I’ve been in that dark place where I was numb on autopilot. I didn’t even know I was up there until the next day, and that could happen to other people.
“I know that seeing a note like that could have quite possibly helped me out of that head space at the time, it’s upsetting that someone would take them down.
“The people who are doing it have never been in that situation, they need to get a bit of an understanding that it is actually helping people. It’s saving lives.”
Since leaving the notes across the city, Rocco himself has been inundated with support from people, some of whom have said the messages saved their life.
One of those people is an anonymous Derby parent, who said had they not seen one of Rocco’s notes, they may have attempted to end their own life.
They told Rocco: “I owe you my life, bro. My children offer their thanks because of you. I was having a bad day in May, a really bad day, and I found myself on a bridge where I came across your message.
“It was enough to make me falter and stop just long enough to really think about what I was doing. You didn’t just save my life that day, you stopped me ruining the lives of my five children, too. For that, I’m eternally grateful and I owe you everything, thank you.”
Another Derby mum wrote to Rocco to tell him her son, who suffers with psychotic episodes, had gone to a bridge with the intention of taking his life.
On seeing Rocco’s note, the mum said her son completely changed his mind.
She said: “My son was thinking of jumping and came across a letter on a bridge that completely stopped him doing so. He told me about the letter. I thought he had imagined it to be honest, and my son says that the letter told him not to do it.
“He said he won’t be thinking of jumping anymore so thank you from the bottom of my heart, our family will be eternally grateful to you and people like you, you are a hero.”
Rocco said he is not going to stop pinning the notes around Derby, despite the fact they have been torn down, and pleaded with the culprits to stop ripping them off.
Armed with a fresh set of quotes for winter, Rocco says he has a host of new designs that include butterflies and more colours which he will pin on Derby’s bridges.
I owe you my life, bro. My children offer their thanks because of you... It was enough to make me falter Grateful parent