Since 1995, children from every continent except Antarctica have contributed handmade butterflies to Holocaust     Museum Houston as part of “The Butterfly Project,” an international effort to collect 1.5 million handmade butterflies to commemorate each of the 1.5 million children who perished during the Holocaust.

These exquisite, colorful butterflies were created using an incredible array of        materials and innovation. The memory of the children and the loss of their     talents and possibilities is felt in the grace and beauty seen in each of the       butterflies to be displayed. Diversity is demonstrated by the vast amount of   difference in creativity and materials which include: paper, wood, feathers,   fabric, metal, stained glass and even concrete.

The butterfly - with its story of rebirth and transformation into new life - has become a symbol of freedom from oppression, intolerance and hatred ever since Pavel Friedmann wrote his poem as a prisoner in 1942. He wrote about life in the Terezin Concentration Camp and the fact that he never saw another butterfly. More than 12,000 children under the age of 15 passed through the Terezin camp between the years 1942 and 1944. More than 90 percent of the children who were there perished during the Holocaust.

The Brazoria County Historical Museum invites you to witness first-hand the beauty of the butterflies that has drawn international media attention. The Museum, located at 100 East Cedar in Angleton, will host the display from April 1^st through June 30, 2016.  The display has inspired a lesson in kindness and so the museum will host an exhibit devoted toward acceptance and tolerance, as well as a Kindness Wall. The Museum hopes to encourage visitors to randomly select an act of kindness from the wall and fulfill it out in the world. Visitors may also leave suggested act of kindness on the wall that others may help spread.

In conjunction with the exhibit, the Museum will host several programs in honor of “The Butterfly Project.” In May,  the museum will host a special guest speaker, a holocaust survivor who will share their story of survival. More        information will be sent once available.  On Saturday, June 11^th at 10am the museum will also host a family friendly event that explores kindness through story-telling, crafts, and a butterfly release.