Jordan Martin, the owner of a lighting company, Home One, is encouraging everyone, come this Wednesday, February 22 (Anti-Bullying Day) to shine a light on bullying.

"With the Pink Shirt Day, my kids come home from school and they participate in that and I just was thinking one day, how can we try and help that cause?" he said. "We  came up with the idea that on the 22, why don't we try and get people that have any sort of lights on their home to light them pink for a common cause."  

Martin said that for every photo of a house that is lit pink with the hashtag #shinelightonbullying, or conversely if someone is dressed in pink in the photo, that Home One is tagged in on social media they will donate 25 cents to a local charity in Airdrie, such as the Boys & Girls Club Of Airdrie. 

Martin said that an integral part of being a business owner is giving back to the community, and by doing this, he feels he is not only giving back but demonstrating to his kids and others in the community why Pink Shirt Day is so important.

"Bullying is a problem right now that I think affects everybody in all walks of life, whether it's in the schoolyard or whether it's on social media. I think protecting our kids is extremely important. Bullies try and take away the happiness of others and so for me, that cause is really, really, really close. I always had a sensitive place in my heart for this." 

According to Safecanada.ca, 47 per cent of Canadian parents have at least one child that has been a victim of bullying, while 40 per cent of Canadians are bullied in the workplace every week.

Anti-bullying Day, also known as Pink Shirt Day originated some years ago when a fellow friend and a student of a Grade 9 boy decided to take a stand against bullying after his friend was harassed for wearing a pink shirt to school. The young man along with a teacher and other students would distribute as well as wear a pink shirt, to stand in solidarity with his friend and all other kids who were bullied. 

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