Members of the Walton High School community recently planted a garden of 500+ daffodils through the global initiative, The Daffodil Project.

“Our students demonstrated outstanding leadership and initiative in completing this project,” said math teacher and staff organizer Anna Stanton. “The initial planning of the project started last year, and it was truly gratifying to witness the students bring it to fruition.”

The Daffodil Project aspires to build a worldwide Living Holocaust Memorial by planting 1.5 million daffodils to remember and represent the 1.5 million children who perished in the Holocaust and in support of children who continue to suffer in humanitarian crises and genocides around the world today.

The Daffodil Project was started in Atlanta in the Fall of 2010 with an initial planting of 1800 daffodils. To date, they have engaged thousands of people at more than 370 locations and planted over 800,000 daffodils worldwide.

“In the wake of all of the crises going on today, it is important to maintain a solid, supportive community,” said student Jake Sommer. “If we don’t learn from the horrors of the past, we are doomed to repeat them.”

Yellow is the color of remembrance. The shape and color of the daffodils represent the yellow stars that Jews were forced to wear during the Holocaust. Daffodils are resilient flowers and return with a burst of color each spring. The Daffodil Project emphasizes the importance of the obligation to uphold justice, symbolizing the strength and resilience of the human spirit.

“We are so proud that Walton supported this important initiative to acknowledge the past,” agreed Walton junior Arden Lichtmacher. “We hope this garden will inspire learning about the tragedy of the Holocaust.”

“At Walton, our students find joy in the diversity of our community. Just as a single daffodil is a beautiful flower, a collective display of many daffodils symbolizes hope and strength within our community,” said Walton Principal Richard Tischler.

Schools, universities, churches, synagogues, city parks, and botanical gardens have all participated in The Daffodil Project, planting beautiful gardens of their own. The daffodils bloom each year at each location, with a dual purpose to beautify and inspire.