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Toronto, Thursday, November 1st, 2012 It is a pleasure to be here to celebrate our men and women in uniform. Recently, I was presented with the very first poppy of this year’s National Poppy Campaign, a precursor to Remembrance Day in less than two weeks. It is at this time that we remember the sacr...

Toronto, Ontario, Friday, November 2, 2012 Thank you for your warm welcome and for inviting me to the opening of this remarkable new centre. Today is a great day for health care in Canada, which makes it a great day for Canadians and, in fact, for people from around the world, who will benefit from ...

Toronto, Friday, November 2, 2012 Thank you for inviting me to join you for this celebration of excellence—I am delighted to be here. As patron of the Canada Awards for Excellence, I am filled with pride to see so many talented and dedicated people gathered together in this room. These awards are a ...

Ottawa, Tuesday, November 6, 2012 Thank you for your warm welcome. I am delighted to be here this evening to help celebrate this milestone anniversary. Having spent much of my career working as a university professor, dean and administrator, I am keenly aware of the role this association plays in st...

November 9, 2012 Message from His Excellency the Right Honourable David Johnston Governor General and Commander-in-Chief of Canada, on the Occasion of Remembrance Day OTTAWA—This year, as governor general of Canada, I had the honour of taking part in the ceremony in France commemorating the 95th ann...

Rideau Hall, Thursday, November 8, 2012 I would like to welcome all of you here to Rideau Hall, home of the people of Canada, and a place where you will always be welcome. We gather today in a spirit of friendship that will, I hope, define your time in Canada. You come from around the world, speak d...

Ottawa, Sunday, November 11, 2012 November 11th is the weightiest date on the calendar of Canadian life. It is a day that forces us to make sense of a thick tangle of feelings and thoughts—many of them in conflict. We commemorate the valiant acts of our citizens, even as we recoil from the horrors o...

Calgary, Tuesday, November 13, 2012 Thank you for bestowing upon me this honorary degree from your distinguished, innovative, collaborative and visionary school. I’m deeply touched to receive this tribute. Honorary degree? It hardly seems fair, does it? All of you have struggled and sacrificed for t...

Calgary, Tuesday, November 13, 2012 What a pleasure it is to join you here today on this beautiful and dynamic campus. I have been looking forward to this visit. The University of Calgary’s goal of becoming one of Canada’s top five research universities by 2016 is characteristically ambitious, and I...

Rideau Hall, Wednesday, November 7, 2012 Welcome to Rideau Hall. One year ago, the newly minted Women for Mental Health, a philanthropic program created by the Royal Ottawa Foundation, celebrated its inauguration in this Tent Room. This was the beginning of a special partnership between the Governor...

Rideau Hall, Thursday, November 15, 2012 I am honoured to welcome you to Rideau Hall, home of the people of Canada, for the presentation of these decorations for military valour and meritorious service. Let me begin by saying how pleased I am to be presenting these decorations in the presence of our...

Ottawa, Friday, November 16, 2012 It is a pleasure to congratulate the Royal Society of Canada on the occasion of this milestone anniversary. It was my predecessor, Lord Lorne, who first proposed the establishment of this society, fondly referring to it as one of his “Canadian children.” Lorne saw t...

Ottawa, Monday, November 19, 2012 Thank you so much for your very warm welcome. I’ve been eagerly looking forward to this evening’s celebration since I received your invitation. As patron of the Community Foundations of Canada, I’m overjoyed to celebrate with you the twenty-fifth anniversary of the ...

November 20, 2012 Message from the Governor General of Canada on the Occasion of National Child Day OTTAWA—As the proud parents of five daughters and grandparents of nine grandchildren, Sharon and I take the wellbeing of children deeply to heart. It is important for us to commemorate National Child ...

Rideau Hall, Tuesday, November 20, 2012 It is an honour to welcome you to Rideau Hall, the home of the people of Canada, for this important and timely discussion. I am particularly pleased to once again welcome the laureates of the 2012 Killam Prizes, who are so deserving of the prestigious awards t...

Rideau Hall, Friday, November 23, 2012 One of the delights for all of us at Rideau Hall is to honour our country’s most accomplished citizens on behalf of all Canadians. I’m privileged today to be in the company of men and women who join the ranks of the most talented, wise and generous people our c...

Toronto, Sunday, November 25, 2012 What a wonderful Grey Cup weekend it is shaping up to be here in Toronto! Once again, we are seeing how passionate Canadians are about our unique brand of football. I am certain that former governor general Lord Grey would be delighted to witness the state of the g...

Montréal, Tuesday, November 27, 2012 What an honour it is to be with you today for this very special event at the home of the Fusiliers Mont-Royal, the oldest francophone regiment in Montréal. Although this is my first visit to this historic building—as perhaps it is for you—I am well aware of the o...

Montréal, Tuesday, November 27, 2012 Thank you for your warm welcome, and for inviting me to address this important conference today. Let me begin by welcoming those of you who have travelled great distances to be here in Montréal. In a country known for multiculturalism, this is one of Canada’s mos...

Rideau Hall, Wednesday, November 28, 2012 A man, dressed in black, rises at the call of his name. He approaches the podium, looks out at the crowd, many of whom would be able to spot a lackadaisical sentence with very little effort. They are masters of the written word, creators of worlds, storytell...