Do you have an orange shirt ready for Orange Shirt Day this Wednesday (Sept. 30)?
If not, how about decorating your own for a challenge where you can win one of three prize packs.
The First Nations Health Authority (FNHA) and Northern Health’s Indigenous Health Team have partnered to host the challenge in recognition of Orange Shirt Day.
Sept. 30 is Orange Shirt Day, which remembers, witnesses and honours the healing journey of residential school survivors and their families.
It began when survivor Phyllis (Jack) Webstad told the story of her first day at St. Joseph’s residential school near Williams Lake.
She was proud to wear a shiny new orange shirt bought by her grandmother, but when she arrived at the school two-hours away from her home on Dog Creek Reserve, it was taken away from her.
Orange Shirt Day acknowledges the brutal legacy of residential schools and celebrates the resiliency of Indigenous peoples.
For the t-shirt contest, the challenge is to reflect on what Orange Shirt Day means to you and decorate a t-shirt of your choice. You have to include the phrase “Every Child Matters” in your design.
It’s a fun activity that the whole family can participate in. You can decorate any t-shirt of your choosing with whatever materials you’d like, which gives you the opportunity to be as creative as you can.
If you don’t have an extra t-shirt to decorate on hand, that’s okay too.
You can draw a picture of how you’d like your shirt to look or try designing one digitally as well.
Once you’re done decorating your design all you have to do is take a photo of your shirt and email it to the team at Indigenous Health ([email protected]).
Make sure to include where you’re from and a brief note about what Orange Shirt Day means to you in the email.
The contest is open until Oct. 1 and the prize packs include a book from the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society called Spirit Bear and Children Make History and a handmade cloth face mask.
Three winners will be chosen from each of the northeast, northwest and interior regions of Northern Health.
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