St. Regis Falls CSD

As part of an ongoing partnership with the school district, an amazing superhero without a cape was in St. Regis Falls for the last time this school year to teach students and educators how they can keep activating compassion, empathy and HOPE in their classrooms and beyond.

Pat Fish, of Sweethearts & Heroes, was in the St. Regis Falls Central School District on Monday, April 28 and Tuesday, April 29. Sweethearts & Heroes aims to prevent hopelessness, bullying and suicide by providing dynamic, inspiring content that centers on the human interaction skills necessary for schools and other organizations to change all aspects of their culture — skills such as empathy, compassion and teamwork.

Sweethearts & Heroes offers a profound, engaging signature presentation that calls for HOPE (Hold On, Possibilities Exist), Empathy and Action; Circle, which is built on the ancient ritual of communicating in a circle to build compassion and empathy; and the BRAVE Youth Leadership System, which trains older students in bully drills that they, in turn, teach to students in lower grades, thus creating a sustainable, student-directed initiative.

During this school year, Sweethearts & Heroes started offering Train the Trainer, which teaches current educators how to weave their own Circle trainings for future hires; and STEP (the Student Teacher Empathy Program), which teaches high school students how to present Sweethearts & Heroes’ signature assemblies for students in grades K-2 and 3-5.

Sweethearts & Heroes’ central team of traveling presenters includes: Tom Murphy, Director and Founder, of St. Albans, VT; Ret. U.S. Army Sgt. Rick Yarosh, a HOPE expert, Purple Heart recipient and motivational speaker from New York who was burned severely while serving in Iraq; and Pat Fish, BRAVE Program Director & Circle Specialist, also of New York. Josiah McKeon and Wyatt Hackett, both of New York, also visit schools for Sweethearts & Heroes.

In November 2024, Murphy and Yarosh made their initial presentations in the St. Regis Falls CSD. Fish’s Circle work in January, March and April was a follow-up to those assemblies.

Since their very first appearance in our district back on November 12, Sweethearts and Heroes has sent ripples of HOPE and empathy awareness throughout our school community. Each Circle visit this winter and spring has allowed our students and staff to know each other on a deeper level by sharing personal perspectives and stories, but most importantly, through the experience of actively listening to one another…not just to respond, but to really listen, which is the most important skill to develop in order to be effective communicators. 

Several of our high school students have inquired about, and have been provided with, opportunities to assist with elementary classes during their Circle sessions. These experiences have been a proactive way to develop leadership skills in our older students while providing our younger students with positive adolescent role models who they will more than likely encounter walking through the halls of our small school on a regular basis…which is one of the beauties of our small school!

It is our hope to build upon the foundation set this year with the return of Sweethearts and Heroes during the 2025-26 school year, at which time we will focus on continued Circle sessions, training staff how to run Circle sessions and arming our older students with the strategies to run “Bully Drills” with our younger learners. 

Our society revolves around and relies so heavily upon technology that the fine art of face to face interactions is somewhat lost to many, and this is true for our children most of all. Strengthening and encouraging in-person communication is vital to building positive human relationships. And Sweethearts and Heroes provides us with the tools to do just that.

Fish said, “Circle is an opportunity for amazing stories to be shared and heard. Amazing isn’t good or bad. Some amazing stories I’ve heard are heartbreaking, others are heartwarming, and others are downright hilarious. But every single one of us has an amazing story, because we all have unique experiences. Circle allows everyone a chance to share those stories and, more importantly, practice listening so that we can learn others’ amazing stories. Also, everyone practices various social-emotional skills in Circle. What sets us apart? We make it fun! Everywhere we go, there’s a thirst for Circle from students of all ages, social groups and backgrounds. They want to connect further with people around them. Circle is a vehicle for that.”

For more than 16 years, Sweethearts & Heroes has presented what Murphy calls “‘the ‘stop, drop and roll’ of bullying” to more than 2.5 million students in school districts from New England to Hawaii and north into Canada. Sweethearts & Heroes also tailors its presentations and professional development workshops for businesses, nonprofits and civic groups. Murphy said, “We go where we’re needed. That’s what heroes do.”

In November 2024, during Veterans Day week, Yarosh released A Bridge Named Amos, the inspiring, true story of his hero and service dog, Amos, who died last October, just before the book went to press. Born on Christmas Day, Amos was a lovable, black Lab who traveled with Yarosh over thousands of miles to hundreds of schools with Sweethearts & Heroes. Together, they taught children and adults how to overcome challenges, celebrate differences and embrace empathy. A Bridge Named Amos is told from Amos’ warm perspective, and it comes with a free downloadable workbook. OESJ Central School District (NY) Art Teacher Kevin Cannon illustrated the book.

Sweethearts & Heroes’ other books include Boredom School: For Those Bored in School, a collection of captivating, humorous and thought-provoking poems by Pat Fish; and 13 Pillows For Affective Teachers, a novel by Tom Murphy and Brian McKeon, also of Vermont, that covers the themes of HOPE, Empathy and Action in the Sweethearts & Heroes curriculum.

In September 2024, during National Suicide Prevention Month, about 140 students from seven Upstate New York schools attended Sweethearts & Heroes’ first three-day — and phone-free — Youth Leadership Summit with Spartan Race at Killington Resort in Vermont.