WINSLOW -- Rachel Pelletier noticed early on that one member of the girls' group session at Winslow Junior High School seemed troubled.

Turned out the girl had problems at home and that led to an entirely different conversation, as well as the genesis of Tuesday's "Day of Hope."

Rachel and fellow members of the girls' group, as well as many other students and faculty, came to school dressed in white as a symbol of support -- and thereby hope -- for those with difficult home lives.

The initiative actually started Thursday when the girls' group, about 10 students strong, began to sell white rubber bracelets with the words "There is Hope" on them.

By Tuesday the group had sold about 250 bracelets for a $1 apiece, all of which the girls plan to donate to the Family Violence Project.

An identical effort, also launched by a student girls' group, took place at Lawrence Junior High School on Tuesday. Students there sold about 200 "Day of Hope" bracelets, Lawrence guidance counselor Angie Dooley said.

Lyn Mikel Brown, a Colby College professor, helped form the girls' groups at Winslow and Lawrence junior high schools with help from her students, who team with guidance counselors at the schools to serve as facilitators.

Hardy Girls/Health Women, the Waterville nonprofit committed to the healthy development of girls, also provides support.

But Brown said students in the Winslow girls' group deserve full credit for the "Day of Hope."

"This really was girl-initiated," she said, "and that is what is so wonderful about it. The adults just created the scaffolding for it."

Rachel said the girls' group discussion had a huge impact on everybody involved and led to another member disclosing that she, too, had a difficult home life.

"They both said 'We don't talk about it a lot, because we don't want people feeling sorry for us,'" Rachel said.

Subsequent research led the girls' group to learn grim facts about the extent of troubled homes in Maine, including that 33 percent of students in grades 6-12 live with an alcoholic or drug-dependent parent.

Brown said getting young people to share concerns is not an easy task. What's needed first, she said, is a foundation of trust, and that trust takes time to build.

The Winslow group, though, now two years in existence, has had that time, she said.

"It is probably not by chance that this became an initiative and really took off by a group that has been going for two years," Brown said. "It does take work and time to create these safe places, but when they click, they can really take off."

Riley Jones, a Winslow girls' group member, said fellow students responded well to the Day of Hope.

"Some of the kids who didn't wear white wore the bracelets," she said.

Kiarra Blair, also of the girls' group, stressed that the message was embraced as well.

"This whole white thing we have, I really think it made people realize what is going on," she said.

Winslow Junior High guidance counselor Penny Linn praised the cooperation exhibited by the school's girls' group.

"They have rallied and been supportive of one another," she said, "which is not to say there aren't going to be disagreements. That is life."

But on Tuesday, the disagreements were few. Instead, unity ruled the day, a day of hope shared by everybody.

Colin Hickey -- 861-9205

chickey@centralmaine.com