A Kingston teen saw her very own design go on orange shirts across the country on Saturday, as part of the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.
Sophia Westcott, 16, submitted her design as part of a Canada-wide contest with the Boys and Girls Club, and her design ended up being the winner.
“I thought this would be very good in making a resume, and by also helping the community out a little bit,” Westcott says.
“I just felt like it was a very good opportunity to do it.”
Young people from more than 100 clubs across the country participated in the contest.
On Saturday, Westcott’s shirts were worn by Boys and Girls Club members and staff from coast to coast.
She has been a member of the Boys and Girls Club for over a decade, and staff at the local club thought she would be a good person to submit a design for the contest.
“I knew that she was very talented artistically, and I knew that she was incredibly passionate about cultural representation,” says Caraline Billotte, manager of youth and education at BGC South East.
“So I knew this was right up her alley.”
The design features a head, which Westcott says represents everyone in the Indigenous community.
Coming off the head are feathers, signifying the strength of Indigenous Peoples.
“The feathers are supposed to be eagle’s feathers, which are really prominent in the Indigenous community, which represent strength and wisdom,” Westcott says.