Charlotte County native Brittany Dale has created Southside Rocks —  an initiative that seeks to create awareness about the county and its communities.

“The idea was inspired by the (creators of the) Appomattox Rocks page, who got their idea by seeing, like, pages around the United States,” Dale said. “It’s pretty simple. You paint rocks and hide them in public places for others to find. Once they are found, you snap a picture and post it to the Southside Rocks group on Facebook. Then, you can choose to re-hide the rock elsewhere, or keep it and make a new rock to replace that one. It’s a fun community building exercise to encourage others to explore their neighborhood.”

Dale said the rocks are typically hidden in Charlotte Court House, Keysville and Drakes Branch. Anyone can participate in the searches.

“All you have to do is find some rocks and painting supplies and get creative,” Southside Rocks offered on its Facebook page. “Artwork should be kept PG as children are encouraged to look for rocks.”

Dale said she’d like to involve more people in the activity — increasing the number of rocks that can be found.

Desiree Evans Lee said she enjoys participating in Southside Rocks because in a small town, it provides an outlet to share messages to other individuals who may never come in contact with each other.

“We can encourage each other,” Lee said. “(Doing) something that has helped us to smile can help another that we may never know,” said Lee.

“It’s just a blessing to be able to do this,” she added. “The kids love it; it’s a great way to spend time as a family, whether you are hunting for the rocks or painting pictures or words of encouragement on the rocks.”