The Jewish Holocaust Centre in Wellington, New Zealand is preparing a travelling memorial for the 1.5 million children killed during the Holocaust.
Each child will be represented in the display by a button. The buttons were collected from all over the world and are of every shape and color. They have been stored at the centre but will soon be displayed in a unique traveling exhibit.
The design was facilitated by Matthijs Siljee, assistant head and lecturer from the Massey School of Design.
According to the Holocaust Centre, "His design captures the original intention of representing each child and conveying the unimaginable scale of 1.5 million lives."
Almost 800,000 of the 1.5 million buttons have been sorted and cleaned and made ready for the display. It is hoped that the display will be ready by the end of the year.
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Groups regularly gather at the centre to sort and clean the buttons. It is a time intensive project that has taken years to get to this point.
Recently 14 Mormon missionaries from the Wellington New Zealand Mission gathered at the centre to clean and sort buttons for the display.
While there, Holocaust Centre volunteers shared the heart-wrenching stories of children lost in the senseless events that still haunt the world.
It is hoped that bringing awareness to such a tragedy will be a catalyst for peace by those who view it.
Wellington missionaries routinely serve their neighbours by mowing lawns, cooking meals, planting trees, singing songs and teaching faith in Jesus Christ.
The opportunity to sort and clean buttons while being taught was a memorable experience for all.
Watch a short video on missionary work here.
The Buttons Project produced by Newsroom Contributor - Paesha Tuttle