The Native American Youth and Family Center in Northeast Portland hosted a marketplace ahead of Orange Shirt Day, honoring survivors and victims of residential schools while fostering healing through art and remembrance.

In 2013, Orange Shirt Day was born after she shared her childhood story of her new orange shirt — gifted to her by her grandma — being taken from her at age six, on her first day at the St. Joseph’s Mission in the early 1970s.

Orange Shirt Day creator Phyllis Webstad is calling on Canadians to honour both Orange Shirt Day and the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation — two similar, but distinct days.

THUNDER BAY - Orange Shirt Day, observed annually in Canada on September 30th, serves as a poignant reminder of the painful legacy of residential schools and intergenerational residential school along with the ongoing struggles faced by Indigenous communities.

The fourth annual National Day for Truth and Reconciliation saw plenty of community members gathering across Barrie on Monday, reflecting on the impacts of residential schools and honouring survivors.

Memorials abound on the fourth National Day for Truth and Reconciliation in Canada and in parts of the United States on Monday, Sept. 30. The federal holiday in Canada became official in 2021. Even the Canadian Football League is honoring the children who passed away in boarding schools as a way to never forget the horrors done to Native peoples during colonialism.

Marchers took to the streets to mark the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation in Montreal. Nakuset, one of the organizers, said she hopes to keep the issue at the front of mind and incoropate more youth into the movement.