4. The Senate in Canadian Communities

In Touch with Canadians

• Speaking Engagements
  
  Senators are often invited to speak to Canadians about their work as parliamentarians and on issues of public policy. They travel to all regions of the country to speak to and learn from students, non-governmental organizations, professional associations and other groups.
  
  
• Outreach
  
  Senators participate in many outreach programs throughout the year, either on behalf of the Senate or at their own initiative. These activities increase public awareness of the role and responsibilities of the Senate. Some of the outreach activities for 2003–2004 included:
  
  
  • Senate Reading Circle (October 2003), hosted by Speaker Dan Hays. Forty students from Ottawa's Connaught Public School listened intently as eight senators read stories of their choosing with great enthusiasm. At the conclusion of the event, the school was presented with various books for all to enjoy.

    L to R: [1] Senators Maria Chaput (Lib–Manitoba), [2] Laurier LaPierre (Lib–Ontario), [3] Joyce Fairbairn (Lib–Lethbridge, Alberta), [4] Pana Merchant (Lib–Saskatchewan) and [5] John Buchanan (C–Halifax, Nova Scotia) (background left) and Marilyn Trenholme Counsell (Lib–New Brunswick) (foreground right) joined [6] Speaker Dan Hays and Kathy Hays at the Senate Reading Circle in October 2003.

    
    
  • National Security Studies Course (April 2003), a program offered by the Canadian Forces College. Participants visited the Senate Chamber and met with Senator Colin Kenny (Lib–Rideau, Ontario), Chair of the Standing Committee on National Security and Defence.
    
    
  • International Women's Forum (March 2004), an organization of pre-eminent women leaders of significant and diverse achievements. Through its Leadership Foundation, the Forum helps prepare future generations of women leaders. Participants were welcomed in the Senate Chamber by Forum member Senator Céline Hervieux-Payette, P.C. (Lib–Bedford, Quebec).
    
    
  • Many Facets of Parliament (spring and fall), a three-day learning program designed for and by employees who work in the Senate, the House of Commons and the Library of Parliament. The program gives employees the opportunity to learn more about the legislative process and about how their work supports the work of parliamentarians in their duties representing Canadians.
    
    
  • The Andrea and Charles R. Bronfman Award (February 2004), which provides annual tuition and travel costs to Ottawa for a student in Canadian studies. This year's winner, Tessa Woodworth of Mount Saint Vincent University, visited the Senate on February 19, 2004, and met with senators, Senate political officers and officials.

The Senate and Canadian Youth

The Senate offers a variety of employment programs and educational activities designed to give Canadian youth opportunities to learn about Parliament and its institutions.

• Senate Page Program
  
  In the 2003–2004 fiscal year, the University of Ottawa and Carleton University accredited the Senate Page Program. Upon completion of a research paper related to Parliament, pages attending either of these universities can now receive full course credits for their part-time work in the Senate. Pages were also given greater responsibility, and training for pages was expanded to include time-management and communications skills.
  
  

  Front row (L to R): Megan Reid (Ontario), Sarah Johnson (Ontario), Lindsay Mossman (Manitoba), Chief Page Michelle Jones (British Columbia), Usher of the Black Rod Terrance Christopher, Deputy Chief Page Davy Coyle (Ontario), Agnès Kim (British Columbia) and Adél Gonczi (New Brunswick). Back row (L to R): Mace Bearer Richard Logan, Andrea McCaffrey (Quebec), Ashley Delaurier (Ontario), Alexandra Spiess (Ontario), Dustin Milligan (Prince Edward Island), David Bousquet (Quebec), Clinton Unka (Northwest Territories), Christopher Reed (Nova Scotia), Janelle Boucher (Nova Scotia) and Administrative Assistant Monique Grenon.

  
  
  
• The first annual Senate Page Alumni Reunion took place in May 2003. Over 50 pages attended, representing more than 60 years of the program. Among them was Francis James Foran, who was a page in the 1950s and retired in 1993 from the Senate Protective Service. "I went there for a few days to help out as an honorary page during the railroad strike and I stayed there 40 years," he explained.
  
  

  Clerk of the Senate Paul Bélisle surrounded by fellow alumni at the first annual Senate Page Alumni Reception on May 28, 2003

  
  
  
• Friends of the Senate
  
  The Senate works in partnership with the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board's Ridgemont High School and the Écoles catholiques de langue française du Centre-Est's Collège catholique Samuel-Genest to provide physically and mentally challenged students with the opportunity to develop life skills to prepare them for the working world. Students gain experience in various areas of the Senate Administration, provide assistance and support to senators and Senate staff, and learn and develop new skills.
  
  
• Summer Employment and Co-op Programs
  
  The Senate hires approximately 30 university students each summer to work in various areas of the Senate Administration, including legislative services, finance, human resources, communications, parliamentary precinct services and in senators' offices.
  
  In addition to its own youth employment programs, the Senate works with the House of Commons and the Library of Parliament to help make possible the following education programs for students and teachers.
  
  
  
  
• Forum for Young Canadians
  
  Forum for Young Canadians is a bilingual education program aimed at giving 16- to 19-year-old high school and CEGEP students an in-depth understanding of their federal government. It also gives participants the opportunity to meet and establish friendships with other students and teachers from across the country. Each year, more than 500 students and teachers take part. During the week-long program, participants visit Parliament, the Supreme Court and various federal government departments and agencies. They also have a chance to meet with senators and the Speaker of the Senate.
  
  
• Encounters with Canada
  
  Each year, the Canadian Unity Council brings hundreds of students to Ottawa to learn about Canada's parliamentary system. Since it was founded in 1982, this non-profit educational program has given more than 40 000 young people between the ages of 17 and 19 a close-up view of Canada's system of government.
  
  
• Parliamentary Guide Program
  
  This program recruits university students from across the country to welcome and provide tours to the over one million people who visit Parliament Hill each year. Every summer, 45 university students are hired as full-time guides; during the rest of the year, between 55 and 60 students attending universities in the National Capital Region are employed part-time as guides. They help visitors understand and appreciate the history, art, architecture and functions of Parliament, while developing their own public-speaking and interpersonal skills.
  
  

  Charles Robert, Principal Clerk, Procedure, explains the history of the Senate mace to a group of parliamentary guides in training (summer 2003).

  
  
  
  
• Other Student Programs
  
  Other programs for students included the National Student Commonwealth Forum, the Canadian Summer Law Internship Program sponsored by the Detroit College of Law at Michigan State University's Center for Canadian-U.S. Law, and a forum for American students who were in Ottawa as interns at the Embassy of the United States of America.[SEN1]
  
  
• Teachers Institute on Canadian Parliamentary Democracy
  
  This annual week-long program brings together 70 educators from across the country. They gain first-hand insight into the inner workings of Parliament, which they can then share with their students. The Speaker of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Commons greet participants. Throughout the week, they have an opportunity to meet and hold discussions with officials and parliamentarians from both Houses of Parliament, through presentations and question and answer sessions. Senators also take part in a roundtable discussion with members from the House of Commons to give participants further insight into their respective roles.
  
  

  Senate Speaker Dan Hays (back row, centre) with a group of participants from the Teachers Institute on Canadian Parliamentary Democracy in November 2003. Chief Page Michelle Jones (right) holds the mace.

  
  
  

• 	The online version of The Senate of Canada video.

  The Senate in the Classroom and on the Web
  An educational video produced by the Senate is now available on the Web. The 22-minute video is divided into nine individually viewable clips intended for teachers of Canadian history, politics, social science and civics. The video clips explain the work of senators in the Upper House, in committees and across the country. For more information, visit http://senate-senat.ca/videos.asp.

Guardian of History

The Senate is committed to preserving its rich heritage for the enjoyment of all Canadians. In addition to housing and carefully protecting historically significant works of art and furniture, the Senate endeavours to keep its history alive and to honour the men and women who serve it.

Speakers' Portrait Gallery

The Senate is particularly proud of its portrait gallery of speakers, which dates back to before Confederation. An official portrait of the Honourable Gildas Molgat, the 44^th Speaker of the Senate, was unveiled at a ceremony in April 2003. Senator Molgat (Lib– Ste-Rose, Manitoba) served as Speaker from November 1994 to January 2001, before passing away in February 2001. The portrait is the work of Manitoba artist Mary Valentine.

The portrait of Manitoban senator and former Senate speaker Gildas Molgat (Lib–Ste‑Rose, Manitoba) was unveiled in the Senate Foyer in April 2003.

Golden Jubilee Portrait of Her Majesty the Queen

The Queen's canadian Golden jubilee portrait taken in 2002 and unveiled in June 2003.

Roméo LeBlanc Medal

In April 2003, the Senate featured the National Awards for Responsible Fisheries, which comprise four awards recognizing the outstanding contributions made by commercial fishers in Canada toward developing and promoting responsible fishing practices. One of the four laureates is given the Roméo LeBlanc Medal, created in 1999 in honour of former Governor General, Senate Speaker and Senator Roméo LeBlanc (Lib–Beauséjour, New Brunswick). The medal is given for making the greatest contribution to responsible fishing in the spirit of the Canadian Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries Operations. This Code contributes directly to the conservation of fish stocks and the protection of the aquatic environment for present and future generations of Canadians.

The 2003 recipient was Ulf Snarby, of Liverpool, Nova Scotia, for his work towards ensuring that fisheries are fished in a sustainable and responsible manner. Captain Snarby's work on trawl fishing gear has successfully addressed issues of by-catch reduction and fuel efficiency. His training programs set a world standard in Canada's offshore freezer trawler fleet for crew safety and catch quality.

The Senate Remembers

Every year, the Senate, in co-operation with Veterans Affairs Canada, organizes the launch of Veterans Week. The Ceremony of Remembrance is hosted by the Speaker of the Senate and takes place in the Senate Chamber in the presence of distinguished veterans. The theme for 2003 was Canada Remembers the Korean War.

At the ceremony on November 4, 2003, Memorial Crosses were awarded to the relatives of 17 soldiers from the 2^nd Regiment of the Royal Canadian Horse Artillery who lost their lives in the Canoe River train wreck on November 21, 1950, while en route to the Korean War. Korean Ambassador Ki-ho Chang spoke at the ceremony, along with Senate Page Agnès Kim, who was born in Korea and came to Canada as a child. Cadets from the Royal Military College were also in attendance, as can be seen in the photos.

"The contribution that Canadian soldiers made as part of the United Nations forces in Korea is immeasurable," said His Excellency Ki-ho Chang, Ambassador of the Republic of Korea. "It was their service and sacrifice that cast the foundation for the special friendship that Canada and Korea enjoy today."		Youth representative and Senate Page Agnès Kim echoed the importance of Canada's role in the Korean War, making her remarks in English, French and Korean.
The Act of Remembrance was read by Sgt.-Maj. George Malcolm, Tom Boutillier and Arthur Evoy.

A Compassionate Commitment

In 2003–2004, the Senate demonstrated its awareness of social responsibility through a variety of initiatives and achievements.

• National Child Day
  
  Senator Landon Pearson (Lib–Ontario) hosted National Child Day celebrations in the Senate in November 2003, with 200 children and youths. Special guests included Silken Laumann, Olympic rowing silver medallist, and Lt.-Gen. (retired) Roméo Dallaire, Advisor to the Minister of International Co-operation on War-Affected Children. Ms. Laumann led the group in stretches and cheers to underline the importance of physical activity for young people. Lieutenant-General Dallaire stressed the need for adults to listen to children. National Child Day commemorates the unanimous adoption of the Convention on the Rights of the Child by the United Nations General Assembly in 1989. Canada ratified the Convention in December 1991.
  
  
• Workplace Charitable Campaign
  
  As it does every year, senators and Senate staff threw themselves enthusiastically into the Government of Canada Workplace Charitable Campaign. Everyone got into the act because there was something for everyone's taste—golfing, bowling, a spaghetti dinner, a craft sale, a book and bake sale, and even a "harvest of pennies," which put people's loose change to good use. Fundraising and contributions, including payroll deductions, raised more than $54,000 to go to needy causes.