The Team

About

Our Team

The people behind the movement.

“My story started with one orange shirt, but it became something so much bigger than I ever imagined.”

Phyllis Webstad

Leadership

Phyllis Webstad

Founder & CEO

As founder of Orange Shirt Day and ambassador for Orange Shirt Society, Phyllis Webstad facilitates dialogue around the Indian Residential School system and creates space for healing. Orange Shirt Day, recognised annually on September 30, is a day for people to reflect, educate themselves and commit to Truth and Reconciliation.

Phyllis Webstad is Northern Secwpemc (Shuswap) from the Stswecem’c Xgat’tem First Nation (Canoe Creek Indian Band). She comes from mixed Secwepemc and Irish/French heritage, was born in Dog Creek, and lives in Williams Lake, BC.

As the Founder and Ambassador of the Orange Shirt Society, Phyllis tours the country telling her story and raising awareness about the impacts of the residential school system. What began as her personal healing journey has become a national movement for truth and reconciliation.
Phyllis has published two books: “The Orange Shirt Story” and “Phyllis’s Orange Shirt” for younger children, ensuring her story reaches readers of all ages.

She earned diplomas in Business Administration from the Nicola Valley Institute of Technology and in Accounting from Thompson Rivers University. Phyllis received the 2017 TRU Distinguished Alumni Award for her unprecedented impact on local, provincial, national and international communities through the sharing of her orange shirt story.
Today, Phyllis is married, has one son, a stepson and five grandchildren. Through her continued advocacy, she ensures that Every Child Matters is more than a message—it’s a promise for future generations.

Shannon Henderson

Chief Operating Officer

Seli’xwelut Shannon Henderson serves as the Chief Operating Officer of the Orange Shirt Society. A proud member of the Squamish First Nation and a Sixties Scoop Survivor, Shannon was separated from her community at the age of three and later reunited with her family. This personal journey has fueled her lifelong commitment to healing, reclamation, and advocacy.

In her role at the Orange Shirt Society, Shannon brings a wealth of experience in diversity, inclusion, and reconciliation. Her previous tenure at Vancity saw her play a pivotal role in embedding reconciliation as a core organisational value.

As a descendant of Residential School Survivors, she possesses a deep understanding of intergenerational trauma and its lasting impact on families and communities. This insight drives her service on the boards of both the Orange Shirt Society and the Indian Residential School Survivors Society, continuing her grandfather Edward Gilbert Nahanee’s legacy of advocacy and change.

Shannon’s leadership has been instrumental in expanding national initiatives such as the Orange Jersey Project, the Every Child Matters Crosswalk, the Quilts for Survivors programme, and the Survivor Speaker Series. Her contributions have been recognised with a nomination for the 2025 YWCA Women of Distinction Awards in the Reconciliation in Action category.
Through her work, Shannon continues to honour her family’s legacy, fostering healing and hope within Indigenous communities across Canada.