Tanara Oliveira/B次元官网网址 Staff

When we think of being important, the people who come to mind are usually our family.

We want to matter to them.

Once this is achieved, society B次元官网网址� often in the form of school, church and work B次元官网网址� becomes the focus and we start from a place where we struggle to matter to other people beyond our family circle. And one of the moments when we most want to show our worth is when weB次元官网网址檙e little and on our first day of school.

ThatB次元官网网址檚 what Phyllis Webstad wanted to feel when she went to the St. JosephB次元官网网址檚 Mission Residential School in Williams Lake, B.C. in 1973. She wanted to feel that she mattered, and she prepared herself carefully.

B次元官网网址淲e never had very much money, but somehow my granny managed to buy me a new outfit to go to the Mission school,B次元官网网址� Webstad said. B次元官网网址淚 remember going to RobinsonB次元官网网址檚 store and picking out a shiny orange shirt. It had string laced up in front, and was so bright and exciting B次元官网网址� just like I felt to be going to school. When I got to the mission, they stripped me and took away my clothes, including the orange shirt. I never wore it again. I didnB次元官网网址檛 understand why they wouldnB次元官网网址檛 give it back to me, it was mine.B次元官网网址�

And just like that, with a brutal, yet symbolic act, Webstad began her journey at a notorious residential school. There she came to believe that she didnB次元官网网址檛 matter, and surviving all the horrors of that place became rule number one.

Years later, when her son Jeremy was born, Webstad felt all alone.

B次元官网网址淎s my grandmother and mother each went to residential school for 10 years, I never knew what a parent was supposed to be like,B次元官网网址� said Webstad. B次元官网网址淲ith the help of my aunt, Agness Jack, I managed to raise my son and make him know me as his mother.

Webstad worked to raise her son to build a legacy that would allow Jeremy, years later, to be a present father to his children.

After this, she began her healing process.

B次元官网网址淚 went to a treatment centre for healing when I was 27 and have been on this healing journey since then,B次元官网网址� Webstad said. B次元官网网址淚 finally get it, that the feeling of worthlessness and insignificance, ingrained in me from my first day at the mission affected the way I lived my life for many years. Even now, when I know nothing could be further than the truth, I still sometimes feel that I donB次元官网网址檛 matter. Even with all the work IB次元官网网址檝e done.B次元官网网址�

Despite all the pain of the past, Webstad graduated from both the Nicola Valley Institute of Technology and Thompson Rivers University.

Webstad is also the creator of the Orange Shirt Society, responsible for Orange Shirt Day, and the author of three books. This movement, which has been embraced for 10 years, brought together former students and their families from the Secwepemc, TsilhqotB次元官网网址檌n, South Dakelh and StB次元官网网址檃tB次元官网网址檌mc nations, along with the Cariboo Regional District, the mayors and municipalities, school districts and civic organizations in the Cariboo region.

Each Sept. 30, Orange Shirt Day sparks a discussion about residential schools and the treatment of Indigenous people in Canada.

Orange Shirt Day allows Canadians to have important conversations, building bridges and promoting reconciliation. This day reminds survivors and others touched by residential schools that their stories matter. No matter their age, as the saying goes, every child matters.

B次元官网网址淚 am honoured to be able to tell my story so that others may benefit and understand, and maybe other survivors will feel comfortable enough to share their stories,B次元官网网址� said Webstad.

READ MORE: Stories about truth and reconciliation