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, it is also one of the most demanding of life’s challenges.

This challenge is all the more difficult when you are caring for a child who has been beaten down by unfortunate circumstances.  You must put the pieces back together, one at a time, with infinite patience. Through simple, daily, repeated actions, you must rebuild their trust. Consoling, reassuring, listening, comforting. Day after day. Night after night. Consistently. Affectionately.

You, the parents who provide these children with a new family, become an essential presence in their lives. You must assume many roles: not only as a mother or father, but also as a healer and a fundamental resource for them. Becoming a companion for a child who has been devastated is a tremendous responsibility.

How do you give a wounded child faith in him or herself, faith in adults, faith in life? How do you fix what has been broken? How do you give that child wings so that he or she may fly once more? How do you help that child to realize his or her full potential?

More than anything else, fostering a child, as you know, means making room for that child in your heart. It means providing a safe, nourishing environment; a place where the child can thrive. It means acknowledging his or her often painful experience and dealing with it. One must be attentive, know how to listen, act adequately. This requires teamwork as we sometimes feel overwhelmed by such a challenge. So conferences like the one you are attending this week are so very important. They give you a forum to gain knowledge and the opportunity to share your experiences and recharge your batteries.

Children are not commodities. They are not clients. They are small human beings. So what worries me the most is the fact that these children are often shifted around from home to home and therefore lack stability and a sense of trust. And my other concern is that, because of legal and bureaucratic obstacles, only 10 per cent of these children are adopted and more than three quarters of them are not eligible for adoption. These numbers are staggering.

I am so very happy that some of the children are here with us today. Welcome!  It gives me such hope to see sparkles in your eyes and to know that you have found the security and the self-confidence that all children should have. As governor general and a mom, I want to make sure that all children have the means to fulfill their dreams to become later on full members of their communities. No one should be excluded and everyone should be given a fair chance to succeed.

I know that it has not always been easy and that it still feels difficult at times.  But I want you to know that there are many of us who care for you and want you to be happy in a safe and loving family.

Thank you, children, for being such an inspiration to all children of this country who are craving for hope. And thank you, everyone, from the bottom of my heart, for your commitment to children—our most precious treasure.