COMOX VALLEY, B.C. – Thursday will be a day to remember.
Students, educators and the community will wear orange shirts on September 27th in honour of residential school survivors and their families.
According to School District 71, the wearing of an orange shirt comes from Phyllis Webstad’s personal story of a beloved orange shirt and how her first day at a residential school ended in misfortune.
In addition to wearing an orange shirt, there will be a presentation from Webstad on October 1st at the K’omoks Big House from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.
The event is presented by Comox Valley Schools Indigenous Education and Kumugwe Dancers. Following the public presentation, Webstad will tour select school districts for three days to promote her message “Every Child Matters”.
“It is an honour to welcome Phyllis here for the first time to share her personal stories of residential school that has touched the hearts of many since she began sharing her story in May 2013 in Williams Lake,” stated Bruce Carlos, Principal Indigenous Education, in a school district release.
“Our school district was one of the first to begin acknowledging (the day) in 2014 by holding assemblies, sharing Phyllis’s story and having our students wear orange.”
SD71 noted that the September 27th date was chosen to coincide with the time of year when children were taken from their homes to residential schools.
More details can be found at orangeshirtday.org.
