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Vancouver, Wednesday, March 8, 2006 I am delighted to be here with you to celebrate MOSAIC’s 30th anniversary on my first official visit to British Columbia. It is in the spirit of friendship that I speak to you today, because I have faced the same challenges you have faced: adapting to a different ...

Vancouver, Thursday, March 9, 2006 I am truly delighted to be here. And I wish to start by addressing a persistent rumour: You may have heard that I accepted the position of governor general because of the opportunity it would afford me to visit Vancouver more often. I cannot completely refute this ...

Vancouver, Thursday, March 9, 2006 It has been an extraordinary pleasure for me to spend the past three days experiencing the generous hospitality of British Columbians. The warmth of your climate is surpassed only by the welcome of your citizens. And loving Vancouver as I do, I hope not to wear out...

Ottawa, Monday, March 20, 2006 My friends, I use this word deliberately because I come to you as a friend. As I stand before you, I feel a kinship with you, with women of all backgrounds. I am particularly moved to be here with you today. As I recently stated at a luncheon organized in Victoria to c...

Rideau Hall, Wednesday, March 22, 2006 It is an honour for me and my husband, Jean-Daniel Lafond, to welcome to Rideau Hall some of the greatest artists of our time. Particularly since this residence houses roughly one hundred works of art by Canadian painters and visual artists, past and present, w...

Presentation of the Governor General’s Awardsin Visual and Media Arts March 22, 2006 I believe that the 20th century was a century of unwavering barbarism. And as this new century dawns, it too is already characterized by barbarism: a modern barbarism, an industrialized barbarism, mass barbarism. Ye...

Gatineau, Wednesday, April 5, 2006 It gives me great joy to be here among so many young people who are such skilful and proficient spellers. Congratulations to everyone who has made it to the finals! Spelling is a sport, one that exercises the muscles of the brain and memory. You prepared for this b...

Montreal, Friday, April 7, 2006 I am deeply moved to be here at La Maison Parent-Roback. Within these walls, I can feel the very strong presence of those two extraordinary women, Madeleine Parent and Léa Roback, who led the charge to improve the lives of female workers and immigrants. We have come t...

Rideau Hall, Tuesday, April 11, 2006 It is an honour for me and my husband, Jean-Daniel Lafond, to welcome to Rideau Hall some of the greatest journalists and news organizations in Canada. As you may have guessed, I feel a personal connection to the Michener Award for Journalism because I, too, prac...

Iqaluit, Monday, April 17, 2006 My husband Jean-Daniel Lafond and I are delighted to be here in Nunavut, “your land,” to kick off the Toonik Tyme festival with you. We feel privileged to celebrate this festival of spring with you, to mark the passage from darkness into light, particularly since you ...

Iqaluit, Tuesday, April 18, 2006 It is an honour for me and my husband, Jean-Daniel Lafond, to be here this evening in the company of those who had a hand in creating this territory and who are now shaping its evolution and our sovereignty. I vividly recall the creation of Nunavut in the spring of 1...

Cape Dorset, Wednesday, April 19, 2006 For me and my husband, this trip is a dream come true. Our daughter, Marie-Éden, would have loved to be here to meet you, but she has school back in Ottawa. We will certainly return one day with her. We are both delighted to be here with you in a community wher...

Cape Dorset, Friday, April 21, 2006 I have been looking forward to meeting with you and am delighted that you have made it to school this afternoon. I am deeply moved by your welcome. To thank you and to mark Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II’s 80th birthday, I have brought you a gift. I am giving the ...

Rideau Hall, Monday, April 24, 2006 It is with great pleasure that my husband, Jean-Daniel Lafond, and I welcome you here to Rideau Hall. Ten years ago, one of my predecessors, the Right Honourable Roméo LeBlanc, created the Governor General’s Caring Canadian Award, and joining us this morning is hi...

Montreal, Wednesday, April 26, 2006 This year, Léopold Sédar Senghor would have been 100 years old. Last year, we commemorated the 50th anniversary of Aimé Césaire’s Discourse on Colonialism which caused a scandal at the time. Senghor and Césaire. Two brothers in language, heart and mind. Two key fi...

Rideau Hall, Thursday, April 27, 2006 It is a pleasure for me to welcome you to Rideau Hall. I am the mother of a young girl whom, as I like to say, I have long carried in my heart before holding her in my arms. I know that caring for a child brings happiness and joy. But, no doubt we can all agree,...

Rideau Hall, Friday, April 28, 2006 It is an honour for me to welcome you to Rideau Hall. Dear recipients, you are everyday heroes. Too often, your achievements are left off the front page. And yet, you have saved lives, eased suffering and misery, brought comfort and support. You are women and men ...

Edmonton, Thursday, May 4, 2006 Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It is a great pleasure for my husband Jean-Daniel Lafond and me, and also for our daughter Marie-Éden, to begin here in Edmonton our first official visit to Alberta. We may be a bit early for the wild roses, but the warmth of your hospitality i...

Edmonton, Thursday, May 4, 2006 My husband Jean-Daniel Lafond, our daughter Marie-Éden, and I are very pleased to be here in Edmonton on my first official visit to your beautiful and dynamic “wild rose province”. Since arriving last night, I have been treated to trademark Alberta friendliness. This ...

Edmonton, Friday, May 5, 2006 Thank you for welcoming me, my husband Jean-Daniel Lafond and our daughter, Marie‑Éden, to City Hall, a place of gathering, dialogue and debate for the citizens of Edmonton. More than simply the “Gateway to the North”, Edmonton is Canada’s northernmost metropolitan cent...