Rideau Hall, Friday, March 6, 2015

Welcome all of you to Rideau Hall for this presentation of the Decorations for Bravery.

This is the home of the people of Canada, and I am so pleased to see such brave and compassionate Canadians fill this ballroom today.

I have heard your stories, and I am truly moved and humbled by your actions.

Today, Canada says thank you for your bravery and selflessness.

Do we have any comic book fans in the audience?  Well, we were all comic book fans at a certain age.

The comic book fans among you will know that Canada is no stranger to heroes!

Superman, for example, was co-created by Toronto’s Joe Shuster in the 1930s.

Then there’s Wolverine, the Canadian superhero of Marvel Comics fame.

And who could forget Captain Canuck?!

You may think I’m getting carried away, but in fact novelist Mordecai Richler once called Superman a “perfect expression of the Canadian psyche.”

He wrote:

 “The mighty ‘man of steel’ hides his extraordinary strength, speed, and superhuman powers under the bland, self-effacing guise of the weak and clumsy Clark Kent. He is a hero who does not take any credit for his own heroism, a glamorous figure in cape and tights who is content to live his daily life in horn-rimmed glasses and brown suits.”

Now, I’m aware of the satire in Richler’s words, but I can’t help noting a parallel between Clark Kent’s relationship to Superman and the daily lives and heroic acts of our bravest Canadians.

None of you would call yourself a hero. You were simply going about your daily routine when you were suddenly faced with an extreme situation.

You did what you knew had to be done.

You did the extraordinary.

I am so inspired by your courage, by your willingness to risk your own safety to help someone in desperate need.

One of the great challenges of our time is to renew our faith in one another and in the idea of helping one’s neighbour. And I can think of no greater proof of the basic decency and “goodness” of people than these Decorations for Bravery.

Each of you is being presented with the Medal of Bravery for taking action in hazardous circumstances.

In many cases, your actions led to lives being saved. In others, tragically, lives were lost despite your best efforts.

We remember those lives today, and extend our deepest condolences to their loved ones.

Let us take comfort in knowing that there are people in this country who care so very much for the well-being of others.

People like you, whose heroic actions are found not in comic books or movies, but in real life.

On behalf of all Canadians, thank you for all you have done, and congratulations on this well-deserved honour.