The founder of Orange Shirt Day, Phyllis Webstad, brought her message of truth and reconciliation to students and community members in Hope on Sept. 24.
Webstad, a member of the Stswecem’c Xgat’tem First Nation, spoke to more than 100 students, staff, Elders, and guests at Shxwelís te Ts’qó:ls – The Spirit of Hope Secondary School as part of its Truth and Reconciliation Week.
The event opened with a welcome from Chawathil First Nation Chief Aaron Pete, followed by a drumming ceremony to honour Webstad’s advocacy for survivors.
During her presentation, Webstad recounted her own experiences at St. Joseph’s Mission Residential School, which she and three generations of her family attended. Using photos to illustrate, she described the trauma residential schools inflicted, the disruption of Indigenous traditions, and the intergenerational impacts that remain today. She also raised lesser-known aspects of this history, such as forced sterilization.
Webstad explained how Orange Shirt Day, founded in 2013, was inspired by her memory of having her orange shirt — a gift from her grandmother — taken away on her first day of residential school. “It felt like we didn’t matter to anybody. It felt like I didn’t matter,” she told the audience. “That’s how we came up with ‘Every Child Matters.’ Because we mattered.”
Despite the heavy topic, Webstad infused humour into her talk, even joking about her current collection of orange shirts: “I have two closets at home full of orange shirts.”
Orange Shirt Day, marked annually on Sept. 30, honours survivors and the children who never returned home. It was officially recognized as the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation in 2021.
At the end of her presentation, students honoured Webstad with a song celebrating feminine strength, led by Indigenous Support Workers Caitlin Demmitt and Kristie Peters.
