(Ottawa, ON) September 9, 2022 – Friday, September 30, 2022 is Orange Shirt Day! Orange Shirt Day is an incredible day dedicated to Truth and Reconciliation and honouring Indigenous children who attended Residential School.

We at the Legacy of Hope Foundation are dedicated to educating Canadians and creating awareness about the impacts caused to more than 7 generations of children as a result of the treatment they experienced while attending Residential and Day School, and/or by being adopted out and placed away from the family, community and Nation. Since 2000, we have worked with Survivors, Indigenous communities, researchers, curators, and educators to develop K-12 curriculum, mobile exhibitions, research publication, communication materials and resources aimed at fostering Reconciliation.

Orange Shirt Day began in William’s Lake, British Columbia and was started by Stswecem’c Xgat’tem First Nation Elder, Phyllis Jack Webstad who had her new orange shirt taken away on her first day at the St. Joseph Mission Residential School when she was six years old.

Since 2013, Canadians of all backgrounds have been wearing orange shirts to acknowledge the experiences of Indigenous students who attended Residential Schools across Canada and to ensure that people in Canada advocate for Indigenous children by supporting causes such as every child matters. We encourage all Canadians to participate by wearing orange, learn the origins and share the story, or volunteer with Indigenous organizations in your community! http://legacyofhope.ca/everychildmatters2022/

We also could not continue to do the work that we do without the generous support of all our donors, and we are incredibly grateful. In honour of this day, we are looking to raise $50,000 this month. Donations will support On-the-Land Healing programming and Cultural Reclamation Workshops for Survivors and their families. Please donate today or share this information to spread the word! www.legacyofhope.ca/donate

The LHF has more than 30 educational, mobile exhibitions that promote awareness of Indigenous history that are free to borrow and is working on making exhibitions available online. LHF also has curriculum for grades K-12 and for adults, along with Activity Guides, Workshops and Training, and Podcasts all aimed at educating Canadians about Indigenous history and the shared history of Residential and Day Schools, the Sixties Scoop, etc. The LHF works to develop empathy and understanding so as to eliminate racism against Indigenous Peoples.

Our charitable registration number is 863471520RR0001