A grand project by a tiny Jewish school in Wellington to collect 1.5 million buttons has been boosted thanks to the donation of more than 32,000 buttons by members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints living in the South Island.
The buttons are being collected by Moriah School to build a memorial in remembrance of the estimated 1.5 million children killed in the Holocaust.
“Each time we add buttons to the collection we talk about how important it is to remember the Holocaust to ensure it never happens again,” said Justine Hitchcock, Principal.
The buttons weighing 25 kilograms fill a suitcase that is being flown to Wellington this Thursday.
Melanie Riwai-Couch, spokesperson for the Latter-day Saints said “as you count each button you think of each child that died, each one individual and unique, it is very sobering.”
Eden is a five-year-old Latter-day Saint who helped to count the buttons. “I like the buttons, they are pretty and have different shapes. There are hundreds and hundreds of them and that makes me sad for all of the children,” she said.
“This has been a great opportunity, for people from one faith group to support people from another one with a very good cause,” Riwai-Couch said.
Moriah School needs a further 50,000 buttons. Donations can be sent to Moriah School, PO Box 27 233, Marion Square, Wellington City.
