From École T.M. Roberts School to the Victoria legislature, Jersey Day was celebrated across the province on September 28.
Students at Cranbrook's French Immersion school wore their favourite team jerseys to classes on Friday to take part in the province-wide celebration of community sports and team support. TM Roberts' kindergarten classes were a flurry of team colours, from the Vancouver Canucks to the Kootenay Ice, and all the way to the Boston Bruins and Montreal Canadiens.
In Victoria, Minister of Community, Sport and Cultural Development Bill Bennett took a walk on the harbour in his Kootenay Ice jersey with delegates from the Union of B.C. Municipalities at the tail end of their conference.
"Whether it be a community or professional team, I'm encouraging everyone to wear a jersey today," Bennett said. "Our government is committed to vibrant and healthy communities. Jersey Day enables everyone to show off their civic pride through their favourite team, proving that sport has the power to unify us all."
Jersey Day precedes Sports Day in Canada and helps to ramp up community spirit leading into Sports Day, which was celebrated on Thursday by the Cranbrook Skating Club at the Memorial Arena. The club invited anyone to come out and learn to skate for free while promoting the club's activities.
The third annual Sports Day was celebrated nationally on September 29, finishing off a week that included thousands of events across Canada. B.C. Had its highest level of participation so far, with 200 events happening across the province, including the skating event in Cranbrook.
Sports Day is presented by ParticipACTION, True Sport, CBC Sports and Healthy Families BC.
At TM Roberts the initiative was organized by by kindergarten teacher Karen Robinson. Students at the school spent the week celebrating Sports Day by participating in a number of different activities. The Kootenay Ice stopped by to play a little hockey, Evolution Martial Arts and Stages School of Dance did demonstrations and they played a few games of volleyball.