The button project.It started as a dream, a need to educate future generations about the Holocaust, to teach tolerance, and to remember the past. Under the auspices of the Jewish Federation A Jewish Federation is a confederation of various Jewish social agencies, volunteer programs, educational bodies, and related organizations, found within most cities in North America that host a viable Jewish community. of Peoria, a small band of people joined together with the goal of teaching people about the Holocaust so that it will never happen again. Eleven million buttons have now been collected and hand counted. Each button represents a life--recognizing not only the six million Jews Six Million Jews their deaths a testimony to Nazi “Final Solution.” [Eur. Hist.: Hitler, 1123] See : Genocide marked for extermination extermination mass killing of animals or other pests. Implies complete destruction of the species or other group. , but the five million enemies of the state who died in Hitler's death camps. Each Tiny Button Reminds Us From that small band of people, grew a worldwide effort as students, senior citizens, and people from every age group in between, took on the task of collecting and hand counting each of the eleven million buttons. The buttons came to Peoria from such diverse places as New York City New York City: see New York, city. New York City City (pop., 2000: 8,008,278), southeastern New York, at the mouth of the Hudson River. The largest city in the U.S. and Singapore. The diversity of those who have contributed to the project underscores the message of tolerance and acceptance of others. Remembering with a Memorial The memorial now consists of eighteen glass columns, in two rows, containing six million buttons, each representing the life of a Jew exterminated. Each column is in the shape of the Star of David. The placement of the columns represents the selection process at the camps: those to the right will survive another day, and those to left are taken to the gas chambers. Eighteen columns were used to represent the total number contained in the Hebrew word "chai," which means "life." Glass was chosen for "Kristallnacht" or "The Night of the Broken Glass." Five million more buttons are encased en·case tr.v. en·cased, en·cas·ing, en·cas·es To enclose in or as if in a case. en·case  ment n. in triangular glass cases that represent the triangular patches
that the enemies of the state were forced to wear. This permanent
structure has been welcomed with open arms by the Shoppes at Grand
Prairie Grand Prairie, city (1990 pop. 99,616), Dallas and Tarrant counties, N Tex., halfway between Dallas and Fort Worth; inc. 1909. Located in a highly urbanized and rapidly growing area, the city's boom caused its population to double between 1970 and 1990. in Peoria, Illinois Peoria, Illinois (named after the Peoria tribe) is the largest city on the Illinois River and the county seat of Peoria County,GR6 Illinois, in the United States. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 112,936. , where it has been seen by thousands ... and
they will remember!
A Legacy of Hope The motto of the Peoria Holocaust Memorial Button Project is "Joining Out Past to Our Future." At our website you can view the memorial and find information on teaching people about the Holocaust and the importance of tolerance for others. We wish to create a world where differences are celebrated and we are all members of one race: the human race. It is your torch to carry to ensure that people remember the past, learn about tolerance, and create a legacy of hope for the future. You can help others to remember. Educational Resources As the chair of the Educational Curriculum Committee for this project, I can attest To solemnly declare verbally or in writing that a particular document or testimony about an event is a true and accurate representation of the facts; to bear witness to. To formally certify by a signature that the signer has been present at the execution of a particular writing so as that donations to the Peoria Holocaust Memorial will be used to create educational resource packets to be provided to school children prior to their visits to the memorial or as another source teachers may use for finding information on the Holocaust. We have developed many materials that will assist every grade level. Since the teaching of the Holocaust is mandated in our state, we feel that our resources will be of great value to teachers in Illinois, and elsewhere. We want to make certain that no one will be able to ever deny that this was a terror that consumed the world. Celebrating Differences You will remember the Holocaust by teaching its lesson to your children and your students. You can build tolerance in your school and your community by celebrating the differences in people and by acknowledging our commonalities. Please visit our website at www.buttonproject.com. And you will remember. Charley Armstrong is an art teacher at Lombard Middle School in Galesburg, Illinois Galesburg is a city in Knox County, Illinois, in the United States. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 33,706. It is the county seat of Knox County.GR6 , and chair of education for the Peoria Holocaust Memorial Project. crayon crayon, any drawing material available in stick form. The term includes charcoal, conte crayon, chalk, pastel, grease crayon, litho crayon, and children's wax colors. @galesburg.net |
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