Clothing Company: To End Bullying We Have to Wear Our Hearts On Our Sleeves

For CustomInk, a Fairfax, VA based custom apparel company, treating employees with respect is a core value for the company. (No wonder they were named a top 100 company to work for by Fortune!)

CustomInk believes that every person deserves to be treated with kindness and respect. That’s why the custom apparel company is committed to sharing its message of unity, compassion and inclusion with everyone, especially in schools where bullying is all too common.

According to the National Center for Educational Statistics, one out of every four students report being bullied during the school year. Sadly, 64 percent of children who were bullied did not report it. 

“CustomInk believes that every person deserves to be treated with respect, kindness, and compassion,” said Lyn Famiglietti of CustomInk. “We also believe that the popularity and ubiquitousness of t-shirts can rally people around a cause.” 

This year, as part of Be Good to Each Other, CustomInk is selling a Unity Day t-shirt that will benefit PACER’s National Bullying Prevention Center, which educates communities nationwide on creative strategies and resources for addressing bullying. The t-shirt is available at Booster, a t-shirt fundraising platform CustomInk founded in 2013. 

Unity Day will take place on Wednesday, October 21st.

“It’s not enough to say you want to end bullying. You have to back words with actions,” explained Lyn. “PACER uses digital tools to get anti-bullying resources in the hands of the parents, teachers and kids who need them, including students with disabilities.”

The Unity Day t-shirt is being sold for $12 during October, which is National Bullying Prevention Month. One-hundred percent of the profits - at least $8 from the sale of each shirt - will support PACER’s programs.

To date, CustomInk has sold nearly 4,000 Unity Day t-shirts and is close to reaching its 5,000 shirt goal. The dollars raised will add to the $120,000 CustomInk has collected with Be Good to Each Other since 2011.

Also supporting this year’s campaign are 12 celebrities, including Gina Rodriguez, Golden Globe Winner for Best Actress in a Comedy Series for Jane The Virgin. 

Each celebrity has created his or her own bullying prevention t-shirt that will be on sale for the duration of the campaign. Gina’s Kindness is Always in Style is shown above. You can see all the celebrity designs here.