What started as a simple idea by a group of hockey parents to sport jerseys in support of those affected by the Humboldt Broncos bus crash has snowballed into a worldwide tribute.

Earlier this week, a group of parents in Langley, B.C. came up with the plan to wear jerseys of their favourite sports teams on Thursday to honour the victims of the tragic collision. Last Friday, a tractor-trailer collided with a bus carrying the Humboldt Broncos team to a junior hockey playoff game in rural Saskatchewan. The crash killed 16 passengers and injured 13 others aboard the bus.

The group created a Facebook event for the idea where they encouraged others to don their favourite jerseys and share a photo of it online with the hashtag #JerseysforHumboldt. The idea quickly caught on and politicians, celebrities, sports organizations, businesses, school boards, and many others in Canada and around the world have voiced their support and shared photos of their jerseys on Thursday.

On Twitter, a quick search of the hashtag revealed thousands of posts sharing photos of jerseys and the hashtag was the top trending topic on the website as of Thursday morning.

Jennifer Pinch, one of the co-organizers of the movement, told CTV News Channel that she’s surprised at how many people have joined in on the effort.

“It really represents that the whole world is behind the victims in Humboldt, the families, the moms, the dads, the communities, they’re not alone,” she said on Thursday morning.

The news of the horrific crash hit home for Pinch who has a 16-year-old son that plays hockey in the Langley Minor Hockey Association.

“I couldn’t believe it. There’s so much tragedy in this world and most of it is unrelatable, this is 100 per cent relatable,” she said. “Our kids are going to be on buses. It’s our kids’ dreams to be on those junior teams.”

Pinch said she hopes the global show of support will reach those impacted by the devastating tragedy.

“We’re all one team right now. We’re all on the team of compassion. We all want to support them. Wearing a jersey is just a way to be one team and one team for Humboldt,” she said.