The Sadako Peace Park in Seattle, WA. was built by Nobel Peace Prize Nominee,
Dr. Floyd Schmoe.
Photo by Jon Honda of Seattle, WA.
This Statue of Sadako Sasaki stands in the Seattle Peace Park. This park was built by Dr.
Floyd Schmoe when he was 93 years old. Dr. Schmoe won the Hiroshima Peace Prize of
$5000 in 1988 and used the money to clear a small lot near the University of Washington.
From a pile of wrecked cars, garbage and brush, he built with volunteers, a beautiful "Peace
Park." The park was dedicated on August 6, 1990, the 45th anniversary of the bombing of
Hiroshima.
The Statue is a life size bronze of Sadako Sasaki, the young Japanese girl who survived the
Hiroshima bombing, but later died from radiation sickness when she was 12 years old.
Hundreds of children visit the park each year and bring Paper Cranes to the Statue on a
regular basis to show their hope for Peace in this World. There are some days when you can
visit the Park and find thousands of the Paper Cranes draped over Sadako.
Sadako is a symbol of Peace throughout the World due to the strength she showed while
fighting against her illness and folding hundreds of Paper Cranes.
The Story
Sadako was two years old when the atom bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, Japan on
August 6, 1945. As she grew up, Sadako was a strong, courageous and athletic
girl. At age 11, while practicing for a big race, she became dizzy and fell
to the ground. Sadako was diagnosed with Leukemia, "the atom bomb" disease.
Sadako's best friend told her of an old Japanese legend which said that anyone
who folds a thousand paper cranes would be granted a wish. Sadako hoped that
the gods would grant her a wish to get well so that she could run again. She
started to work on the paper cranes and completed 644 before dying on October
25, 1955 at the age of twelve. The remaining 356 were folded by her classmates
and buried with her. Some versions of the story say that Sadako made well
over a thousand paper cranes on her own.
The point is that she never gave up. She continued to make paper cranes until
she died. Inspired by her courage and strength, Sadako's friends and classmates
put together a book of her letters and published it. They began to dream of
building a monument to Sadako and all of the children killed by the atom bomb.
Young people all over Japan helped collect money for the project.
Sadako Peace Club for Children
PO Box 1253
Issaquah, WA. 98027-1253
USA
Phone and FAX 425-391-4797
sadakoclub@sadako.org
This page and all contents are © 1997 by
Dream Come Through Productions of Issaquah, WA
Note: I copied this page directly from
www.sadako.org. If you'd like to learn more about this cause, please
go directly to their page. Thank you.
claireluv@hotmail.com
