ABOVE: Ten-year-old Natalie Flaherty with a certificate of appreciation she recently received from the Florida Holocaust Museum, recognizing her efforts to stop hate, which was sparked by her interest in Anne Frank.

FAIRMONT– Several months ago, Natalie Flaherty, a 10-year-old Fairmont girl, embarked on a mission to stop hate by giving out bracelets with that message printed on them, which she was inspired to do after learning about celebrated diarist Anne Frank. Flaherty’s efforts have left an impact not only on those locally, but across the nation and she was recently recognized by the Florida Holocaust Museum and given a special Anne Frank Humanitarian Award.

At the end of December, Flaherty and her family traveled to the museum, which is located in St. Petersburg, Florida.

“I got an award for my bracelets. It’s a certificate of appreciation,” Flaherty said.

Her mother, Becky Flohrs, had initially contacted the museum and asked if it wanted any bracelets, which it was excited about.

“They told me about the humanitarian award and said they’d love to honor her (Natalie),” Flohrs said.

Darrin Flohrs explained that the Anne Frank Humanitarian Award is technically just offered to juniors at schools in Florida. However, the founder of the award, Irene Weiss, made a special award for Natalie because she’s too young for the original award and lives outside of the area.

While at the museum, Flaherty didn’t just get the award but was offered a private tour of the museum, led by a docent. She also got to meet some children of Holocaust survivors.

“I liked talking to them,” Flaherty said, noting that it was a highlight of the tour for her.

She was given a gift bag which contained a Dreidel, a toy with Jewish roots, as well as some items imprinted with quotes and words of encouragement and kindness, which align with Flaherty’s mission to stop hate. She also left the museum with some new books, including a memoir titled “Once My Name Was Sara,” which was written by Holocaust survivor I. Betty Grebenschikoff, who just passed away in 2023.

The book is one of many Flaherty has been reading about the Holocaust. Her interest in the subject first began when she read Anne Frank’s “The Diary of a Young Girl” as a third grade student.

To date, her bracelets are available in 46 states and 17 countries. Locally, they’re available at various places in Fairmont and in the nearby communities of Madelia, Owatonna, Waseca, Rochester and Minneapolis.

They’ve also been brought to the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam, which is number one on the list of places Flaherty wants to visit.

Flohrs shared some advice she’d give to other parents who want to support their children’s interests and passions.

“I would say to let them go for it and be respectful and mindful of how you would like a parent to process your feelings. This is a really hard topic for a lot of people to talk about, especially right now. I think a lot of parents, including myself, are guided by fear and what our kids may or may not understand. Sometimes you just need to allow them the freedom to learn it on their own,” Flohrs said.

Flaherty first brought her interests in Anne Frank to her parents a few years ago and said she wanted to dress as Frank, her hero, for Halloween. However Flohrs was hesitant as she wanted to make sure her daughter better understood the events surrounding Anne Frank. It wasn’t until she got older and did more research on her own that Flaherty was able to dress as Anne Frank and hand out the bracelets this past Halloween.

Flohrs said that during the tour several people at the museum commented on Flaherty’s knowledge of Anne Frank and the Holocaust in general.

As for what’s next, Flaherty said, “I hope that people actually listen and they try to help put a stop to hate.”