On Feb. 25, St. Michaels University School joins communities around the world in marking Pink Shirt Day, with students across Junior, Middle and Senior School wearing pink to signal their commitment to kindness and inclusion.
One of the ways the day takes shape at SMUS is through a t-shirt design contest organized by the Middle School Service Council. This year, the winning design was created by Grade 6 student Evelyn, whose butterfly illustration and message, Be Kind. Words Don’t Rewind., now serve as a visible expression of the day’s purpose. Proceeds from shirt sales support the organization Power to Be.
Pink Shirt Day began in 2007, when two students in Nova Scotia stood up for a younger student who had been bullied for wearing pink. Their act of solidarity sparked a global movement rooted in a simple idea: standing up for one another matters. Today, nearly 180 countries participate, using the colour pink as a symbol of inclusion and support.
For Evelyn, the message behind her design is personal. When she began sketching ideas, she chose a butterfly — an image she has been drawing for a long time and one that, for her, symbolizes peace and kindness.
“They remind me of peacefulness and beauty,” she said. “And beauty can be kindness sometimes.” Around the butterfly, she added four words that reflect what she has learned about the impact of language.
“If you say something, it’s not easy to take it back,” she said. “I hope people will think about what they say a lot more.”
She still remembers a conflict in Grade 1 that escalated quickly as hurtful words spread from one student to another.
“It got too big,” she recalled. “We were all thinking, ‘How do we stop this? We can’t stop it. It’s too late.’” That experience stayed with her, shaping her understanding of how quickly words can cause harm.
She has also come to understand that unkindness is not always loud. “If someone says something mean, it hurts,” she said. “But ignoring almost hurts more.” Her design reflects that awareness, encouraging not only care in what we say, but intention in how we include and acknowledge others.
In Middle School chapel, students led a reflection on what kindness looks like in action, encouraging their peers to consider how small choices can shape a community. Across divisions, students and staff also participated in a “Words of Kindness” survey, sharing messages they would offer to someone having a difficult day. More than 200 responses were collected, and some were later read aloud in a video featuring members of the SMUS community.
On Pink Shirt Day, students across SMUS will wear pink as part of a global movement that began with one act of courage. This year, Evelyn’s butterfly carries that tradition forward.
The words “Be Kind. Words Don’t Rewind” remind us that small choices, especially the words we use, matter.
