Vanderbilt University and Vanderbilt Hillel Unveil the Daffodil Project

On Wednesday, March 25, Vanderbilt Hillel unveiled the Daffodil Project, a global initiative dedicated to Holocaust education and remembrance. Developed by Am Yisrael Chai, a nonprofit focused on Holocaust education and genocide awareness, the project seeks to plant 1.5 million daffodils worldwide in memory of the 1.5 million children who perished in the Holocaust. The initiative is part of Vanderbilt University’s Holocaust Lecture Series, the longest continuously running Holocaust lecture series in the United States. 

The event featured remarks from Ari Dubin, Executive Director of Vanderbilt Hillel; Chancellor Daniel Diermeier; Frances Hahn, a Holocaust survivor; and Vanderbilt students Chloe Schwartz and Leo Silver. Dubin opened the program by emphasizing the importance of preserving memory and introduced Chancellor Diermeier, who expressed his hope that the project would mark the beginning of daffodils blooming across Vanderbilt’s campus for years to come. 

Hahn shared her personal story of survival during the Holocaust. At just three years old, she was placed in a Christian children’s home. After her parents were deported to a concentration camp, she was taken in by a Christian family who cared for her until the end of the war. She later immigrated to the United States, where she was adopted by relatives. 

Silver, who played a leading student role in bringing the project to Vanderbilt, spoke about his long-standing involvement with the initiative. Having first participated in daffodil plantings in elementary school and later through Am Yisrael Chai’s Teen Leadership Initiative, he worked closely with the Holocaust Lecture Series and Vanderbilt Hillel to make the campus installation a reality.  

“I have worked with planting daffodils since elementary school,” Silver said. “And today, due to the incredible support of the Holocaust Lecture Series and Vanderbilt Hillel, we are bringing this project to Vanderbilt, where I hope, we can continue to plant more daffodils every year in various locations across campus.” 

The event drew a diverse audience of students, members of the Nashville Jewish community, and visiting groups from out of state. The program included the unveiling of a commemorative plaque by Silver and Chancellor Diermeier alongside Hahn. The plaque reads: “Resilient, bright, and filled with hope, these daffodils, which return with a burst of color each spring, are part of the worldwide Living Holocaust Memorial that aspires to plant 1.5 million daffodils in memory of the 1.5 million children who perished in the Holocaust and for children who suffer in humanitarian crises around the world today.”