The artwork of students in an Elon math course was displayed Aug. 6 at a Seattle park dedicated to the cause of peace.
A replica of the Elon Phoenix, made from 1,000 cranes folded by students in Associate Professor Alan Russell’s class, was displayed at the Seattle Peace Park.
Russell, pictured at top along with students Mario Gallucci and Alaina Maggio, became interested in the story of Sadako Sasaki, a Japanese girl who died of leukemia following the atomic bomb drop on Hiroshima in 1945. While she was in the hospital, Sadako attempted to fold 1,000 cranes, which is supposed to hold the promise of a long life. Sadako didn’t finish, but her classmates completed the cranes and raised money to create a peace park in Hiroshima, as well as a foundation to promote peace.
One foundation grant resulted in the creation of the Seattle Peace Park, where a small statue of Sadako Sasaki was vandalized in January. Students in Russell’s Winter Term class on origami, the Japanese art of folding, made cranes and formed them into the shape of a phoenix, Elon’s mascot.
Their work was prominently displayed at a rededication ceremony Aug. 6 to celebrate the placement a new statue of Sadako in the park. Later, the phoenix was moved to a community gathering and celebratory dinner before being displayed in the headquarters of the World Peace Project for Children.