The Councils of the Aboriginal Success By 6 and Community Success By 6 initiatives are planning a first annual Walk to Reconciliation – Every Child Matters. The event is set for Friday, Sept. 29, starting at 10 a.m. at Dick Murphy Park in Campbell River. It will follow a route around the Tyee Spit.
The event is sponsored by a Canada 150 grant. Organizers say: “it allows us the exciting opportunity to walk together into a future that acknowledges the Indigenous culture that laid the foundation of our home and will shape our future.”
Participants are invited to wear orange shirts, as the walk is part of annual Orange Shirt Day activities that have developed over the past few years in recognition of the harm the residential school system did to children’s sense of self-esteem and well-being, and as an affirmation of commitment to ensure that everyone matters. The day was inspired by the story of Phyllis Jack Webstad, who had her new orange shirt taken away from her on her first day of school at St. Joseph Mission in Williams Lake, B.C.
There will be a limited quantity of orange t-shirts available at the Sept. 29 event. The walk will end with words of welcome and refreshments.