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Halifax, Tuesday, February 13, 2007 My husband, Jean-Daniel Lafond, and I are pleased to be in such fine company at this dinner graciously hosted by the lieutenant governor, the Honourable Mayann E. Francis, on the occasion of our first official visit to Nova Scotia. We are thrilled to be in the vib...

Rideau Hall, Thursday, February 15, 2007 The portrait being unveiled today is on a par with a country that knows no bounds, a country—as Vigneault sang—whose spirit has been strengthened more by winter than by any other season. Look at the portraits in the foyer. Each of the faces of those who serve...

Dartmouth, Wednesday, February 14, 2007 Good morning. I would like to thank the Coady International Institute, and especially Mary Coyle, for organizing this meeting with you. I would like to leave as much time as possible for the discussion, because I am very interested in hearing your ideas about ...

Ottawa, Friday, February 16, 2007 Of all the citizenship ceremonies over which I have presided as governor general, this is a rather special and—I might add—solemn occasion. Sixty years ago, on January 3, 1947, the very first citizenship ceremony took place right here at the Supreme Court of Canada,...

Montreal, Friday, February 16, 2007 The subject that brings us together tonight is of utmost importance. We have been called together by our hearts, our heritage and our fraternity. We know, of course, that diseases do not have the same prejudices that people do. But is it obvious that they are some...

Ottawa, Monday, February 19, 2007 In today’s ceremony, which brings together different decorations, we recognize the importance of all aspects of the military’s work. Fighting for peace, progress and stability in Afghanistan, our men and women in uniform must constantly demonstrate the highest level...

Opening address at the 4th Rencontres internationales du documentaire and Franco-American co-productions Montreal, Wednesday, February 7, 2007 CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY First of all, I would like to thank Yves Jeanneau and Jean Cressant for inviting me to say a few words to introduce the “General-inter...

Cuvée 2007 Gala Niagara Falls, Ontario, Saturday, March 3, 2007 CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY I would first like to say how pleased I am to have been chosen as Patron of Cuvée Weekend. Exactly a year ago, I had the great pleasure of attending this annual celebration of the Ontario wine industry. I enjoyed ...

Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday, March 8, 2007 I can hardly believe I am here with you today, in Afghanistan. I have come a long way to deliver a message of hope to the women of this country. Let me look at you. I want to etch this image of you slowly into my memory. I want this image to stay with me f...

Ottawa, Tuesday, March 20, 2007 There are those who shrink from the issue of family violence—who recoil from the thought of one spouse attacking the other, or attacking their children. In part, I can understand their revulsion; as someone who has seen it first-hand, and who has heard many personal a...

Rideau Hall, Wednesday, March 21, 2007 Good morning and thank you for joining me as we mark the Bicentenary of the Abolition of the Slave Trade Act in the British Empire. This anniversary is important because it commemorates the day in which trading and enslaving human beings was no longer legal on ...

Rideau Hall, Wednesday, March 21, 2007 My husband, Jean-Daniel Lafond, and I are thrilled to launch the third exhibit in the Ambassadors’ Room at Rideau Hall—with the help of the country’s cultural and museum organizations—just a few days before the presentation of the Governor General's Awards in V...

Rideau Hall, Friday, March 23, 2007 Explore life and be transformed. That, in essence, is the basis for any artist’s creative process. As we take in the culmination of their tremendous work, here at Rideau Hall, in museums, galleries, studios and elsewhere, we celebrate the fruits of their labour. E...

Toronto, Sunday, March 25, 2007 It is a great pleasure for me to be here with you today at York University. First and foremost, let me tell you what a privilege it is for me to have been granted an honorary doctor of law degree from such a prestigious university. As a world-class institution of high...

Rideau Hall, Wednesday, March 28, 2007 Jean-Daniel and I are thrilled to welcome you all in the Ball Room at Rideau Hall, which has been transformed for this festive occasion. A fiftieth birthday needs to be celebrated in style! What a happy coincidence. As luck would have it, the Canada Council for...

Presentation of the Governor General's Awardsin Visual and Media Arts Rideau Hall, Friday, March 23, 2007 Arts Matters is now an established event when the Governor General' s awards are presented. So I can say that, as usual, today’s awards ceremony was preceded by Arts Matters, a forum that brough...

Rideau Hall, Friday, March 30, 2007 It is a great pleasure for me to welcome you here at Rideau Hall today. I stand humbled in front of you, as I reflect on your remarkable ability to respond so effectively to the needs of millions of children in Canada and across North America. I am touched by your...

Ottawa, Monday, April 9, 2007 It was precisely 5:30. A cold, grey morning in northern France exploded with the impossible sound of a thousand guns firing as one. On this terrible signal, the soldiers of the Canadian Corps—the four Divisions together for the time—climbed from their trenches and began...

Montreal, Tuesday, April 10, 2007 Thank you for inviting my husband, Jean-Daniel Lafond, and I to a place that has given us so much joy. Because the theatre itself is pure joy. It is also a kind of forum for debate. A debate between all those who create the performance. A debate between the players ...

La Citadelle, Thursday, April 12, 2007 As commander in chief of the Canadian Forces, I would like to welcome you to the Citadelle of Québec. High atop Cap-Diamant, where the majestic St. Lawrence River narrows—which is the original Indian meaning of the word Quebec—this is the only military fortific...