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Vernon schools, Mounties wear Orange

Orange Shirt Day is held every Sept. 30 in recognition of the harms caused by residential schools
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The Vernon North Okanagan RCMP school resource officer sports an orange tee on Orange Shirt Day Sept. 30, 2020. (RCMP)

This year has been unlike any other due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but that didn’t stop North Okanaganers from grabbing their orange shirts this morning in recognition of the harms caused by the residential school system.

The annual Orange Shirt Day, held Sept. 30, reaffirms Canadian’s commitment to reconciliation while remembering and discussing the reality and ramifications of residential schooling.

Phyllis Webstad picked out an orange shirt to wear on her first day of school in the ’70s. Upon her arrival to the residential school in British Columbia, that new shirt was taken from her and never returned. In 2013, Webstad initiated the first Orange Shirt Day to show “Every Child Matters.”

Schools across the Greater Vernon Area marked the occasion, with COVID-19 safety protocols in place, and shared photographs on social media.

Even the Vernon North Okanagan RCMP school resource officer was donning his orange tee.

Send in your Orange Shirt Day photos to newsroom@vernonmorningstar.com.

READ MORE: Orange Shirt Day in Vernon trashed by hate flyers

READ MORE: Orange Shirt Day lessons of past in today’s classrooms


@caitleerach
Caitlin.clow@vernonmorningstar.com

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