In Commemoration of Holocaust Remembrance Day, sixth-grade students at JFK Middle School in the Comsewogue School District took part in The Butterfly Project after exploring the work of writers like Elie Wiesel and the Pavel Friedmann poem, "The Butterfly."
“Now more than ever, it is important to commemorate Holocaust Remembrance Day and educate our students on the dangers of hatred and injustice while also teaching them about the power of hope and resilience,” said Superintendent of Schools Dr. Jennifer Quinn. “The Butterfly Project gave our students an opportunity to learn about the firsthand experiences of victims of the Holocaust and share their stories so we may never forget them.”
Through The Butterfly Project, Students created a mural of paper butterflies to symbolize the lives lost during the Holocaust. Students visited the World Holocaust Remembrance Center’s virtual IRemember Wall, which matches guests with the name and story of a Holocaust victim. Students then decorated their butterflies in remembrance of the person with whom they were matched. Students shared that the history of the Holocaust became even more impactful when they learned about the individuals who were impacted by the tragic events.
Pavel Friedmann wrote his poem, “The Butterfly,” from the Theresienstadt concentration camp in to symbolize the freedom he and his community lost during the Holocaust. The Butterfly Project aims to teach about social justice and warn about the dangers of bigotry by memorializing the lives lost during the Holocaust.
App users: Visit this page for pictures from The Butterfly Project.