The Lil’wat Business Group (LBG) has launched an Every Child Matters T‑Shirt design contest, calling on Lil’wat artists to submit original artwork reflecting the importance of remembering and honouring the children who never returned from residential schools.
The winner will receive $1,000 and have their design printed on a T-shirt, which will be produced and distributed by LBG.
The Every Child Matters movement is a national campaign to honour Indigenous children who were sent to residential schools, many of whom never returned home. It emphasizes the importance of acknowledging the lasting impacts of the residential school system on Indigenous families and communities, while promoting education, remembrance and reconciliation.
The movement is most visibly recognized through the wearing of orange shirts—an idea inspired by Phyllis Webstad, a residential school survivor whose new orange shirt was taken from her on her first day at the school. Orange Shirt Day is observed annually on Sept. 30, now also recognized as the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.
Designs must be submitted in person or emailed to [email protected] by Aug. 1. The contest is open exclusively to Lil’wat Nation members.
