There were three things University of Idaho junior Tommy Burke told his best friend while they caught up after the summer on their first day of high school: Michael Jackson had died, Burke’s father was getting a divorce from his stepmother and Burke had decided to wear the color orange every day for the rest of his life.
From orange sweatshirts to converse to sunglasses, Burke, who has worn the color orange every day for the past nine years, can be seen around the UI campus wearing his signature color on any given day.
Burke, a political science major and president of the Residence Hall Association (RHA), said the idea to wear the same color every day was originally prompted by a bet he made with a fellow student in the sixth grade.
“In sixth grade, I had this orange Nike sweatshirt that I loved so much I wore it almost every day, especially when it got cold,” Burke said. “On December 13 of 2006, this kid Shawndrae, he’s now a friend of mine, but at the time we were close to rivals, called me out on how much orange I wear.”
Tess Fox | Blot Magazine
Tommy Burke, University of Idaho junior and president of the Residence Hall Association, has worn the color orange every day for the past nine years.
Burke said after trying to explain to Shawndrae that he didn’t love the color orange, he just loved the sweatshirt, his classmate bet him $15 that he didn’t have what it takes to wear orange every single day until the end of eighth grade.
“On the day he called me out, I realized how much orange I was unintentionally wearing at the time,” Burke said. “I remember thinking, ‘This is stupid.’ But I followed through with it anyway, and wore orange every single day … even when I had pneumonia and missed school. I made sure he knew I had worn orange pajamas every day I was home sick.”
Even though Shawndrae didn’t follow through with his end of the bet, Burke said he made the decision to continue wearing orange, even though the bet was over the summer before his freshman year of high school.
Burke’s father, Tim Burke, said when his son first made the bet, he was impressed and amused by the situation.
“I thought it was funny that a kid in middle school had the drive to follow through with something like wearing the same color every day,” Tim said. “When Tommy sets his mind to something, he sticks with it and after a time, wearing orange became his thing. It just kind of became part of who he was.”
Nine years after the original bet was made, Burke said he appreciates the bet as a moment which impacted the rest of his life.
In addition to being known for his signature orange wardrobe, Burke has made an impact on campus through his position as president of RHA.
While Burke said he never expected to become so deeply involved in an organization on campus, he has had a penchant for politics from a young age and became involved with student government around the time he first made the bet to wear orange.
“I’ve wanted to go into politics ever since I was five and saw a presidential debate between George Bush and Al Gore,” Burke said. “I didn’t know who they were, but I recognized the things they were saying to be really important and I realized I wanted to be that guy who can talk about things that matter and make changes in the lives of others.”
Burke said the desire to pursue a career in politics prompted his involvement and eventual rise to becoming RHA president. Burke said his involvement in RHA has not only taught him how to be an effective leader, but also how to persevere and learn from his mistakes.
Tim said after almost a decade of wearing orange every day, the color has come to embody and represent his son’s outgoing personality.
“I think the color orange found Tommy years ago, and he just embraced that it was his personality,” Tim said. “His personality now goes with a visual that ties it together — it is Tommy. He is orange.”
Burke said he plans to continue wearing orange into the indefinite future, and that the color has grown to be a part of his identity as a human being.
“My freshman year of college, I weighed my clothing and I have 40 pounds of clothes that are orange,” Burke said. “It’s come to be something people remember me by now. Orange has become a part of who I am, which is funny, because my favorite color is yellow.”