By CAROLINE EATON
On Sep. 25th, 36 people gathered in Wyatt Hall with the goal of folding a collective 1,000 paper cranes and spreading a message of peace. The group consisted of Puget Sound students and local community members, the first meeting of its kind at the University of Puget Sound.
Puget Sound’s inaugural Cranes for Peace event was organized by student Noah Weatherington (‘27) and sponsored by the Asian Studies Program with support from Japanese professor Mikiko Ludden. In the summer of 2026, Weatherington accompanied Ludden on a research trip to Japan. “Our research team visited the Atomic Bomb Dome and the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum in Hiroshima. There, we learned about Sadako Sasaki, a young victim of the atomic bombing, and the story of the 1,000 paper cranes she folded. Learning about her story left us deeply saddened and moved,” Ludden said. The experience inspired them to bring a tradition of remembrance and peace to the Puget Sound community.
While hospitalized for injuries from the bombing and subsequent radiation poisoning, Sadako began folding paper cranes, following a Japanese folk legend that anyone who folds 1,000 cranes will be granted a wish or a prayer. Throughout her hospitalization, she spread happiness and cheer to the hospital staff and patients, her story becoming a lasting symbol of hope and peace. Sadako died at age twelve, leaving behind a remarkable legacy. Moved by her passing, her classmates and schoolmates raised funds for the Children’s Peace Monument, which was unveiled in Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park in 1958, Weatherington told The Trail. The Cranes for Peace event aims to achieve a similar commemoration. “Peace is a wish to end war and suffering and to live in a world without violence. It’s also to honor victims of war and support survivors of disasters,” Weatherington said.
Folding paper cranes is more than a prayer for good fortune. Over time, this practice has become a cross-continental symbol of peace. “Folding paper cranes transformed from a traditional wish for health into an international symbol of anti-war sentiment, nuclear disarmament and children’s peace movements,” Ludden explained. “Every year, millions of paper cranes are sent to the Children’s Peace Monument in Hiroshima.” Puget Sound’s effort is a small part of a much larger movement to spread Sadako’s legacy in Tacoma and across the world. In April 2026, Episcopalians from the United States and France folded 5,000 paper cranes, which were displayed in front of a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center in Tacoma. By bringing this practice to campus, Weatherington and Ludden hope to continue a tradition of remembrance and peace to the University of Puget Sound community.
“Peace is a wish to end war and suffering and to live in a world without violence,” Weatherton explained. For students in attendance, such as Athan Trochalakis (‘28), this event signified more than a simple crafting session. “It really made me feel like I was doing something that actually mattered on an international level,” he reflected. “It is an opportunity I feel I’ve rarely ever had before.”
The event also served to build community among students studying Japanese and the broader campus community. Trochalakis shared that he enjoyed the social aspect. “I was also quite glad to be able to spend some time with other people in the Japanese department,” he said.
After reaching 1,000 cranes, they will be strung together and mailed to the Children’s Peace Monument in Hiroshima, which commemorates not only Sadako but also the many children who died as a result of the atomic bombing. “Our second event will be held on Friday, Nov. 13, from 5 to 7 p.m. in WY109,” Ludden told The Trail. “We hope that many more people will join us in folding cranes for peace.”