October 2026 Updates from The Hearts Project

Dear Friends of the Hearts Project Foundation,

It is hard to believe another quarter has gone by. We thank you for the ways you have kept up with our progress, either through reading our newsletter or by following us on social media platforms (Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn). With help from independent contractor, Shelley Mouber, our social media efforts are growing in new, important ways. By that I mean that we have begun collecting stories from artists around Arkansas, people who used art to cope with the stressors of the time, or even pivot when businesses were failing. As part of our Foundation’s mission, this work helps us preserve the stories of lived experiences during the pandemic. Ms. Mouber is also using her time to connect with key organizations to help us get the word out about our important work.

Part of our important work surely includes finishing the COVID-19 memorial frames we started. Since January 2026, we have completed two more frames, bringing our total to six. By the end of the year, we have plans for completion of the seventh frame. All told, our seven frames will house 6,300 hand cut paper hearts, bringing us to 48% completion of the overall memorial.

And we now have a specific goal in mind for completing all fifteen frames, designed to house a total of 13,068 hearts and reflect Arkansas’ last reported COVID-19 death toll in March 2023. That goal is linked to our plan to exhibit the finished memorial in the Main Gallery at the Fort Smith Regional Art Museum starting in December 2029 and going through April 2030—marking the ten-year milestone since the first COVID-19 case. We are thrilled to share this opportunity with you, and we hope you’ll consider making a monetary donation to support this ambitious goal.

With gratitude,
Monica Moore, Co-founder and President,

The Hearts Project Foundation

No one believed in memorializing Arkansans who lost their lives to Covid-19 and the experiences we lived through more than Thomas S. Frentz (Tom). He was a patron of the arts for many years before becoming co-founder of The Hearts Project Foundation, a nonprofit with a mission to uplift this very cause. And during those many years, Tom supported the nonprofit’s co-founder and principal artist of the Hearts Project COVID-19 Memorial, Monica Moore--always praising her ability and vision as an artist working in diverse artistic media. The eventual Covid-19 memorial Monica dreamed of creating inspired Tom to support her in completing what she started in the spring of 2020, cutting individual paper hearts to ameliorate the hurt she felt during a pandemic when people were vulnerable and divided. When Monica would sometimes question her ability to bring the now large-scale memorial to completion, Tom would affirm her efforts time and again. And he would make the nonprofit and first many frames of the memorial possible through intrinsic and extrinsic support coupled with an unwavering conviction in the value of the work.

We are devoted to finishing what we started, and we are forever grateful for Tom and all he gave to Monica and The Hearts Project Foundation.

We are excited to introduce the new Digital Memorial Mural, a place where you can honor a loved one, family member, or friend you lost to COVID-19.

Creating a heart takes just a few moments. Choose a heart shape, pick a color, add a pattern such as dots, stripes, or crosshatch, and then write their name or a short message. When you’re finished, your heart is added to the mural alongside hearts from people across Arkansas, each one standing for a life that mattered.

We know that not everyone can visit the traveling memorial in person. The Digital Memorial was created so that anyone, anywhere, can take part. It is a permanent space where your loved one can be remembered whenever you need to visit.

Every heart on the mural holds a story. It might be a grandmother who never missed a Sunday dinner, a coworker who always made people laugh, or a friend who was there when it counted. By adding their heart, you help make sure they are not forgotten.

We invite you to create a heart today and honor someone you love: