Paper Clips Project

I just watched the most amazing documentary called the Paper Clip Project about a small middle school in Tennessee.

From Wikipedia--

"The Paper Clips Project is a project by middle school students from the small southeastern Tennessee city of Whitwell who created a monument for the Holocaust victims in Nazi Germany. It started in 1998 as a simple 8th-grade project and evolved into a project gaining worldwide attention. At last count, over 30 million paper clips had been received. Paper Clips, an award-winning documentary film about the project, was released in 2004 by Miramax Studios."
I cried all the way through it. It is a must see for any educator!

The movie has won many awards from various film festivals. The Web site where the project first was announced is www.marionschools.org/wms/index.htm
The video is available for rent at Netflixs

This movie will leave you a better person and educator for having watched it.

Comments

[Kath Hybl]

Sheryl, I just finished reading about the Paperclip Project. Wow! I can't wait to see it @ the beach. Thanks for letting us all know about this one!

[Sheryl Nussbaum-Beach]

Kathy,

It is a video rental! Check Blockbuster.

[Andrew Pass]

I teach at a Hebrew school. Last year one of the high school classes actually went to TN and visited the school where they did the project. I believe they store the paper clips in a train car from the Holocaust. I'm wondering if there is any way to link this idea of the paper clip to the blog "One Red Paperclip," in which the author traded up from a paper clip to a house. The author has attracted a lot of attention from his bigger and better campaign. I'm not sure how the connection could be made. But wouldn't it be interesting to ask our students to think about this and encourage creativity for humanitarian purposes?

Andrew Pass
http://www.Pass-Ed.com/blogger.html

[Edwin Winet]

In 1992, while in Munich, after motorcycle touring in the alps, we had a few days before return to the USA. I decided to visit Dachau's death camp and did so by electric train. We arrived at the Dachau Banhof, where we were greeted by street musicians in the station that were eerily reminiscent of a small group of forced labor musicians that greeted the (soon to be exterminated) Jews and others! Going into the camp museum's gate, we were quickly passed by German youngsters on holiday. I stood in the "showers" and felt the screaming souls. I stood by the ovens and felt the screaming souls. I stood by the firing squad area and felt the same horror. I was glad that I could witness this obscenety in a FREE Germany, paid for in the risks and deaths of American Soldiers, Sailors and Airmen, many who remain memorialized in Bavaria. The German youngsters left with shock and morose faces. We arrived in the sunshine, but it rained hard during our visit and did not let up until we got to the train! We arrived at our hotel. I was bummed out! I looked out the window, onto the waiting area of the near-by train station. A group of grammar school kids arrived and were waiting for moms to pick them up. These German children were my gift, that blustery October afternoon: JUST KIDS doing kid things that one could see anywhere in the free world!!!
NO Hitler Youth, NO Nazis, NO regimentation. FREE CHILDREN , playing. This was MY gift from the children, a free Germany! Now, I must visit Whitwell, Tn! I hope that you have room for 175 More paper clips, for the 175 members of my family that died.
Edwin Winet, RSVP - 30 -

[Edwin Winet]

In 1992, while in Munich, after motorcycle touring in the alps, we had a few days before return to the USA. I decided to visit Dachau's death camp and did so by electric train. We arrived at the Dachau Banhof, where we were greeted by street musicians in the station that were eerily reminiscent of a small group of forced labor musicians that greeted the (soon to be exterminated) Jews and others! Going into the camp museum's gate, we were quickly passed by German youngsters on holiday. I stood in the "showers" and felt the screaming souls. I stood by the ovens and felt the screaming souls. I stood by the firing squad area and felt the same horror. I was glad that I could witness this obscenety in a FREE Germany, paid for in the risks and deaths of American Soldiers, Sailors and Airmen, many who remain memorialized in Bavaria. The German youngsters left with shock and morose faces. We arrived in the sunshine, but it rained hard during our visit and did not let up until we got to the train! We arrived at our hotel. I was bummed out! I looked out the window, onto the waiting area of the near-by train station. A group of grammar school kids arrived and were waiting for moms to pick them up. These German children were my gift, that blustery October afternoon: JUST KIDS doing kid things that one could see anywhere in the free world!!!
NO Hitler Youth, NO Nazis, NO regimentation. FREE CHILDREN , playing. This was MY gift from the children, a free Germany! Now, I must visit Whitwell, Tn! I hope that you have room for 175 More paper clips, for the 175 members of my family that died.
Edwin Winet, RSVP - 30 -