Paper Clips

Whitwell – a tiny, almost exclusively white Christian community – is nestled deep in the mountains of Tennessee. It is pretty much an insular community, but in 1998, something happened in a classroom, which launched its students into an unlikely project.

During a history lesson on the Holocaust, students learned that Nazis had exterminated over 6 million people. One student bravely asked what 6 million looked like. He could not conceptualize so large a number.

Finding it difficult to explain just how great a number, and therefore the loss of life this figure represented, administrators and students embarked on an inspiring journey of comprehension and remembrance. One principal’s desire to help her students open their eyes to diversity, and an unfortunate event epitomizing hate and bias, soon transformed into an international effort, which breached the walls of this insulated valley. A small project that began in a small town soon became an international effort, making an impact on individuals and communities around the globe.

This movie tells a heartwarming story about a mission to honor each lost soul by collecting…yes, paper clips. One for every life lost.

Somewhere along their journey toward understanding of this tragic event representing the absolute blackness of the human soul, students also learned about the kindness and generosity of the human spirit. They not only collected 6 million paper clips, but far exceeded their goal. In addition, they collected many, many stories, handwritten and shared by individuals who themselves had lost loved ones and friends during the Holocaust.

In the end, this small town became part of an international community - united around a shared purpose. Together, they remembered, honored, and ensured that students and Whitwell community members would never forget the dark road that hate can lead us down.

In the end, students joined with their local community and with individuals from the international community and built a unique memorial. Standing in their schoolyard is now an authentic railroad car once used by the Nazis to transport Jews and others to concentration camps. Only now, it contains an artistic display, built with love and empathy. It honors the lives of all who were lost during this sad event in human history. The individual handwritten stories are on display. And so are the paper clips – and there is one for each life lost.