BRAINERD — When Stefanie DeVries began reading her book, “Grow a Heart,” to an energetic group of children on Thursday, July 10, many of the kids already knew the first words:
“You can make a heart grow.”
The children sat on a soft carpet, surrounded by their parents and family, while listening to DeVries read. The event was the final session of a three-part program designed to bring children together and teach them about the importance of kindness and love.
They’ve been using what they’re learning from the sessions and the book in their everyday lives.
Stefanie DeVries
After finishing the book, DeVries asked the kids how they helped grow someone’s heart since the previous session. One boy said he gave some of the wooden hearts he received at the previous event to his parents. Another girl said she helped out her cousin.
Each of the small acts of kindness was an example of the program’s mission.
Pat Dickinson, coordinator of the Lakes Area Justice Table’s public education team, was one of the driving forces behind the program.
Dickinson said when she first received a copy of “Grow a Heart,” she envisioned it as the perfect book to build a community event around.
“I thought, ‘Wouldn’t that be a neat book to do a class around for adults and kids?’” Dickinson said. “Because we all need to grow our hearts, especially in this era of so much polarity.”
Children and parents make friendship bracelets and “heart-o-meter” crafts at the third “Grow a Heart” session on Thursday, July 10, 2025.
Jasmine Shackleford / Brainerd Dispatch
Lakes Area Justice Table collaborated with the school district to organize the event. When Dickinson reached out to DeVries with the idea, her enthusiasm was immediate.
“She was so excited,” Dickinson said. “She’s been so wonderful.”
DeVries, who currently works for the Brainerd Public Schools Foundation and was formerly a teacher, said she wrote the book during the COVID-19 pandemic entirely on her own with Adobe Illustrator and other programs. She published it with the help of a Kickstarter campaign and a friend in the publishing industry.
“I taught preschool for the school district for 10 years, and during that time, I felt like I needed something to help me teach young kids to be kind and empathetic,” DeVries said. “There wasn’t anything simple enough out there.”
DeVries said she liked the phrase “grow a heart” because it could resonate with even the youngest of children.
“I wanted the illustrations and words to be simple enough for young children, and using the metaphor of growing a heart or hurting a heart was something they could understand.”
Kids make hearts out of Play-Doh at the third “Grow a Heart” session on Thursday, July 10, 2025.
Jasmine Shackleford / Brainerd Dispatch
DeVries created several activities surrounding the book for her preschool classes, some of which were reused during the public sessions.
Each of the three sessions was slightly different, encouraging kids to return repeatedly. At the first session, each child was given a cape with supplies to decorate it, which they were told to bring back at the next session.
“In the book, there’s children wearing capes,” DeVries said. “So they came back the next time with their capes decorated.”
1/3: Stefanie DeVries reads her book, “Grow a Heart,” to a crowd of children on Thursday, July 10, 2025.
Jasmine Shackleford / Brainerd Dispatch
2/3: Kids and parents make friendship bracelets and “heart-o-meter” crafts at the third “Grow a Heart” session in the Brainerd High School cafeteria on Thursday, July 10, 2025.
Jasmine Shackleford / Brainerd Dispatch
3/3: Kids parade around the Brainerd High School cafeteria wearing capes and singing the “Grow a Heart” song with Andrea Lund at the third “Grow a Heart” session on Thursday, July 10, 2025.
Jasmine Shackleford / Brainerd Dispatch
The third session took place in the Brainerd High School cafeteria and began with an hour for the kids to color, make crafts and enjoy a free meal. Then, the activities started at 5:30 p.m.
Following DeVries’s reading of “Grow a Heart,” Jan Kurtz read a Spanish translation of the book, which she had helped create. Her passionate reading helped the kids become excited about learning a foreign language.
Then, Andrea Lund, a former music teacher, played a ukulele while singing the “Grow a Heart” song with the children, which she had written to the tune of “Itsy Bitsy Spider.”
After practicing the song several times, all of the kids donned their capes and paraded around the perimeter of the cafeteria while continuing to sing along with Lund.
The session concluded with more crafts and activities. Each child received materials to make a “heart-o-meter” to show whether their hearts were full, mending or broken. Craft supplies were also provided for kids to make friendship bracelets.
Because most children attended the program with their parents and family, it created a chance for the adults to bond, too. The program encouraged many parents to continue reading and repeating the book’s message to their children at home.
“Grow a Heart,” a picture book by Stefanie DeVries, was the inspiration behind a series of community events by Lakes Area Justice Table and the school district, which finished on Thursday, July 10, 2025.
Jasmine Shackleford / Brainerd Dispatch
“The parents are able to bring what they’re learning home to use as positive behavior reinforcement,” DeVries said.
About 15 children and even more parents attended the third session. Lakes Area Justice Table, a new local nonprofit dedicated to supporting social justice and public education, funded the event with the school district, Dickinson said.
“The district had some funding, and then we put grants and donations into it and some of our budget from the Justice Table,” Dickinson said. “We were able to offer this class totally for free.”
1/4: Stefanie DeVries, author of “Grow a Heart,” helps two kids make hearts out of playdough at the third “Grow a Heart” session on Thursday, July 10, 2025.
Jasmine Shackleford / Brainerd Dispatch
2/4: The first hour of the third “Grow a Heart” session on Thursday, July 10, 2025 featured time for kids to color, eat and make crafts.
Jasmine Shackleford / Brainerd Dispatch
3/4: The third “Grow a Heart” session on Thursday, July 10, 2025 featured supplies for kids to decorate a superhero cape if they had not received one at a previous session.
Jasmine Shackleford / Brainerd Dispatch
4/4: Kids make “heart-o-meter” crafts and friendship bracelets at the third “Grow a Heart” session on Thursday, July 10, 2025
Jasmine Shackleford / Brainerd Dispatch
The program was advertised as a “One Book, One Community” event aimed at bringing the community together by encouraging everyone to read the same book, Dickinson said. Similar events take place across the country following guidelines from the American Library Association.
Dickinson said everyone at the Lakes Area Justice Table agreed “Grow a Heart” was the right book to use for the program. DeVries said collaborating with Lakes Area Justice Table was an exciting process.
“We’ve had a few planning sessions and lots of emails,” DeVries said. “There’s so many volunteers with the group. I had a lot of help. I used some activities that I already had, but I created some additional activities, like a kindness bingo.”
DeVries said seeing kids learn from the book and embrace the theme of growing hearts is her favorite part of the program.
“They’ve been using what they’re learning from the sessions and the book in their everyday lives,” DeVries said.