High School Students Plan Uplifting Surprise In Memory Of Classmate

Days after one of their classmates took his own life, a group of friends in southern Ohio wanted to send a positive message to the rest of their high school student body.

As WCPO Cincinnati reports, Kwadwo Boateng’s suicide on August 25 came as a shock to Mason High School students.

“He was very positive and outgoing,” sophomore Michelle Crispin told the station. “He always wanted to make people laugh; he always wanted to talk to everyone, no matter who it was.”

So, she and a group of friends wanted to do something in the spirit of their late friend. They wanted to reach out to classmates and spread an important message: You are not alone.

“Sometimes it can be really hard to fit in or feel like you are wanted at such a large school,” said Erica English, another sophomore. “We all thought it would be a good idea to show everyone how they’re needed and make everyone feel good.”

English, Crispin and their friends spent eight hours Tuesday night writing four thousand (that’s right, four thousand) Post-It notes—one for each student at Mason High. Those notes, which bore messages like “You are loved” and “You are strong,” greeted students on their lockers Wednesday morning.

“A lot of kids, you’d see them walking around with the Post-It notes or you’d see them talking about it, and it just really made me happy,” said Crispin. “We got so many tweets and texts from people who enjoyed it, and it made their day a lot happier.”

While the girls were recognized for their gesture, they say the real credit should go to Boateng.

“We basically did this because this is what Kwadwo would do,” said student Anna Aronson. “We want to send positive messages like he would do with his friends every day.”

Nothing can bring back Kwadwo Boateng or erase the grief felt by his friends, family and classmates, but these students hope their “love” notes might help someone else going through a hard time.