CARLYLE - The Ronald McDonald House Charity Saskatchewan (RMHC-SK) was looking for a T-shirt design for its orange shirts that they will wear in recognition of their Truth and Reconciliation efforts.
Emilee Steffensen, owner and operator of Moonemis Cree-ations, felt she was able to design a special logo for the shirt. Steffensen is from the White Bear First Nations (WBFN) but presently lives in Carlyle.
Steffensen’s designs were shown to the committee as she donated three of her art pieces to the RMHC-SK. They reached out to her, and she was very eager to share with the group what she had in mind.
They then reached out to their knowledge keeper Lyndon Linklater for his support on the project and after some back and forth communication, Steffensen produced a beautiful design. Over several weeks, Steffensen communicated with the design team to produce a logo for RMHC-SK and Every Child Matters.
They had requested a heart and gender-neutral figure with one wearing a ribbon skirt, and for it to look like a silhouette so that it stood out on an orange shirt.
With those requests, she went to work and designed two-gender neutral adults and a child in the middle. The youth is in the centre of the heart and the adults are on each side, holding the child’s hand.
RMHC-SK is all about helping families, so Steffensen wanted her design to focus on the importance of family, whether it be a single parent, an elder, parents of the opposite sex or same-sex relationship. It was especially important to Steffensen that no one be left out in her design of this important shirt.
The child is to represent the Every Child Matters movement, whether this child be a survivor from the residential school, or they may have a child of their own.
She feels that this design can tell many stories and that is why she created it for the viewer to make up their own conclusion about the storyline and still honour the movement that it represents.
Braids are included in all the hair as this is sacred to Indigenous people and is a symbol of connection with the ancestors, the Earth and its Creator.
Included in the design is a ribbon skirt as it is an iconic piece of clothing, and all Indigenous people have their own story behind this.
For Steffensen it represents resilience, survival and identity. This is a reminder to them of their sacredness of a woman and the power in that, but the meaning changes with each person who wears the skirt and shares their story.
Prairie lilies were added, as this is the official flower of Saskatchewan, and she wanted to honour the land. The flower vine is for the growth of the Indigenous people, their roots on the land and how they overcame trauma.
The detailed artwork was sent in to the RMHC-SK team and they were incredibly pleased with the outcome and the detail in Steffensen’s design.
RMHC-SK is committed to reconciliation and to the TRC Calls to Action.
Kelly Humphery from the reconciliation, equity, diversity and inclusion committee said the Saskatoon Tribal Council encourages organizations to wear the orange shirt the last Friday of every month, to honour and acknowledge the harm done to survivors and their families through the residential system.
Once the logo was completed, t-shirts were ordered in with the design. They have decided to wear the orange t-shirts every Friday in honour of Every Child Matters movement.
