A viral social media post is spreading not only Tennessee Volunteer spirit around the world but also a valuable message.
A couple of uneven letters and scribbled words have touched hearts across the globe. It all began with a kid in Florida who wanted to show off his Volunteer spirit on college colors day but was bullied in return.
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According to a Facebook post from his elementary school teacher, Laura Snyder, the unnamed boy wanted to represent the Vols on college colors day at school, but he didn’t have a UT logo shirt. So he made his own shirt by drawing a UT logo on a white piece of paper and pinning it on an orange shirt.
He wore it to school proudly, but matters took a sad turn at lunch. Snyder’s post said:
“After lunch, he came back to my room, put his head on his desk and was crying. Some girls at the lunch table next to his (who didn’t even participate in college colors day) had made fun of his sign that he had attached to his shirt. He was DEVASTATED. I know kids can be cruel, I am aware that it’s not the fanciest sign, BUT this kid used the resources he had available to him to participate in a spirit day.”1
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Less than twenty-four hours after the post hit the internet, Vol Nation fans far and wide were rallying together to help. VolShop director Carol Miller-Schaefer said:
“It really embodies the whole spirit of the university, the whole Volunteer spirit. I just feel like this has gone way past a shirt, way past the incident, that it’s really resonated in other ways with people.”1
According to VolShop marketing manager Tommi Grubs, the world knows his story and wants to show support, adding:
“To go above and beyond to bring attention to a national issue is really great.“1
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The VolShop is now selling a re-creation of the boy’s shirt with 100 percent of the proceeds benefiting the nonprofit “Stomp Out Bullying” per request of the boy’s mom. As of Monday night, more than 16,000 shirts had been sold. The shirts are in such high demand they crashed the VolShop server! Miller-Schaefer said:
“There’s literally articles about this shirt in any country you can think of, and I’ve looked at those and said ‘I can’t believe this.”1
A spokesperson for the Seminole County School Board, Michael Lawrence, which is the boy’s school district, spoke highly of everyone’s support. He said:
“There’s support we’re seeing all over the place. We’re really proud of what transpired with it.”1
The shirt design is now larger than life, with a display of it on UT’s campus at the Rock. Natalie Campbell, a junior at UT, took the time to paint the design on the rock, saying:
“Being able to replicate his wholesome design was really cool, to get to celebrate it and encourage it, the Vol Nation that spreads farther than just campus.”1
Vol Nation rallies behind Florida elementary student bullied for homemade UT shirt
It’s a pure-hearted reminder to be kind and a reminder that Vol Nation is unstoppable. Miller-Schaefer said:
“I’m just really thankful to be in Vol Nation right now, these people really make me proud.”1
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The University of Tennessee issued the following statement Monday afternoon:
“As the Volunteers, the University of Tennessee believes in putting others before ourselves. We’re so glad we were able to support this student, put a smile on his face and bring more orange into his life. In the true spirit of UT, alumni, fans and honorary Volunteers around the world have stepped up. Pre-sales of the shirt have reached more than 16,000. All proceeds from the sales will go to the nonprofit STOMP Out Bullying.”1
The Vol Shop is selling the t-shirts for $14.99. People can buy the shirts on pre-order, with a delivery date expected in late September. Want to buy the shirt yourself? Click here.
It is not clear what happened to the girls that bullied the young boy, but hopefully they learned a valuable lesson from this experience.
