RICHMOND, Va. — A Richmond family is keeping their daughter's memory alive through painted rocks that spread hope to children battling illness.
Described as an old soul with a heart of gold, the light inside of 14-year-old Maya Smith shined brightly in any room she entered.
"She was smart, she was charismatic, she talked to everyone," Melissa Smith, Maya's mother, said.
"She played basketball, she ran track, she sang in the choir at our church," Smith said.
An amazing sister, daughter and friend, Maya had a gift for connecting with others.
"I think from the time she was born, it was always something about her that drew people to her," Smith said.
Even after being diagnosed with a rare brain cancer in 2017, Maya's passion for helping people pressed on.
"She found a rock down at the children's hospital, it was just placed in a window," Smith said.
The smooth pebble was painted with a picture and uplifting message.
"She decided she was going to paint rocks and hide them around the area, especially down around the hospital," Smith said.
Sadly, the young artist and author died in 2019, having left her mark of motivation on more than 20 rocks.
"She was always looking out for other people, even though she was going through her difficulties," Smith said.
Now almost six years later, Maya's legacy of love will continue to heal the hearts of strangers.
"It's almost a full circle moment because the fact that a lot of these rocks are being painted because of Maya and are going to be spread out in the community because of Maya," Smith said.
Maya's family partnered with C&F Bank to launch "Let's Rock for Maya," a project encouraging the community to paint a rock with a picture or kind message and drop it off at any C&F Bank. The bank will then take the rocks to the Children's Hospital of Richmond at VCU.
"An encouraging message, a bright color, a sunshine, something that just causes somebody to say you know what, I can make it another day, I can go another mile in this journey," Matthew Steilberg said.
It's a simple task Maya knew had the potential to bring light even during the darkest of days.
"Maya shared that when she would come from her treatments and she would stumble upon the rocks and how it motivated and encouraged and touched her," Terra Jones said.
"We're going to do just what Maya did," Steilberg said.
It's a pledge to helping one another that Maya's mother knows her daughter would be proud to see.
"That was one of the things that she cherished the most was making sure people knew the children at the hospital and kind of what they were going through and just being aware of what she was going through but to still give hope and that's what the rocks did for her," Smith said.
To participate, paint a rock and drop it off at any C&F location through the end of August. Each rock will also have a QR code on the back with a link to Maya's story.
Friday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the C&F Bank on New Market Road in Henrico, Maya's family will be holding an Anthem LemonAid Stand where attendees can get and paint a rock.
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