44th Parl. 1st Sess.

September 15, 2022 10:00AM

Mr. Earl Dreeshen (Red Deer—Mountain View, CPC)

Sep/15/22 4:44:46 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to rise today on behalf of the citizens of my riding of Red Deer—Mountain View to reflect upon the tremendous reign of our late Queen. I was deeply saddened by the news of the passing of our Queen and sovereign, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. Princess Elizabeth was but a year younger than my late mother. My father would always quip that he too had a princess who had become a queen, just like the people of the British Empire. He made it clear to us boys just how fortunate we were and how important it was that we treat our mother accordingly. The fact that the princess could fix a vehicle, drive a truck and would serve in her country's military during wartime just emphasized her skills and dedication. When she acceded to the throne at such an early age, her vast knowledge and abilities made her even more impressive. So it was that I heard many stories about the life and times of our Queen Elizabeth. The one-room schoolhouse that my great-grandfather had helped build had been replaced by a Second World War army barrack a few years prior to my grade 1 year. At the front of the room was a portrait of Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip. We sang both O Canada and God Save the Queen. It was so natural for us and we felt this special bond daily. As I grew older and learned more about Canada and our system of government, my interests turned to the Queen's representatives in Alberta, the lieutenant governors, many of whom I have had the pleasure of meeting over my lifetime: the Honourable Percy Page; Grant MacEwan; Ralph Steinhauer; Charles Lynch-Staunton; Helen Hunley; a former MP from Red Deer, the Honourable Gordon Towers; Bud Olson; Lois Hole; Norman Kwong; Donald Ethell; my dear friend, the Honourable Lois Mitchell; as well as our present Lieutenant Governor, Salmi Lakhani. I also truly respected the vice-regal occupants at Rideau Hall. Canada's governors general, over Her Majesty's reign, included the Right Honourable Vincent Massey, Georges Vanier, central Alberta's Roland Michener, Jules Léger, Ed Schreyer, Jeanne Sauvé, Ramon Hnatyshyn, Roméo LeBlanc, Adrienne Clarkson, Michaëlle Jean, David Johnston, whom I got to know very well over his term in office, Julie Payette, and our present Governor General, Mary Simon. For many of us, these people may now just be pictures on the walls of our respective legislatures, but their purpose was to represent Her Majesty on behalf of the people in her realm, and they did that with honour. Not only did these representatives give their hearts and souls to serving us, but their spouses and families brought so much to the offices as well. As all of us in this House know that no one survives in public office without the support of family. This was uppermost in the minds of my wife Judy and me on our drive to Calgary last Thursday. We were driving to the memorial service for a dear friend, the late Doug Mitchell, husband of the Honourable Lois Mitchell, Alberta's 18th lieutenant governor, when we heard the news of the Queen's passing. She had just sworn in the U.K.'s new prime minister two days before, so even though she was at an advanced age it was still so unexpected. At the memorial ceremony there was an extra sense of sadness and finality as speaker after speaker spoke of the unique connection of Alberta's vice-regal family and that of our late Queen. I say this as I turn back to my thoughts on the legacy of our Queen Elizabeth, because there was never any doubt that her late husband, His Royal Highness the late Prince Philip, was always by Her Majesty's side and truly made a difference to her as she served her nation and the Commonwealth. The royal family, and in particular the Queen, have always had a special place in the hearts of Albertans. I was there on that rainy day at the Commonwealth Stadium as the Queen and Premier Klein presented to the crowd, celebrating Alberta's centennial in 2005. It was amazing. Later, as an elected official, I had the privilege to meet Prince Edward during a Duke of Edinburgh award ceremony, Prince William and Princess Kate at the Calgary Stampede, and to stand by as my wife and the Queen exchanged pleasantries when Her Majesty last visited Ottawa. I generally appreciated each encounter and will always speak highly of the experience. Perhaps I still hear my father's voice. As Queen Elizabeth surpassed all milestones of service, I think I had overlooked the reality of what the monarchy would be like after she was gone. In 2012, Canadians showed such pride in our history and celebrated the special bond that existed between Queen Elizabeth and our nation. The Diamond Jubilee medals that celebrated her 60 years on the throne were presented to our fellow citizens for their exemplary service to our nation. It meant so much to so many people. In celebration of her 70 years on the throne, I encouraged grade 6 students within Red Deer—Mountain View to write essays about that one special person in their lives that reminded them of the service and love of humanity best exemplified by Queen Elizabeth II. There were so many beautiful sentiments and such great thoughtfulness expressed by these wonderful students. What about the reality that we now face? Queen Elizabeth II is the only monarch I have known. It is her place in history within the centuries of tradition that I now reflect upon. It is from those reflections that I am now looking forward to the promise of the reign of King Charles III. His responsibilities will be immense, but he has had the greatest of role models. One of those responsibilities is as head of the Church of England, which has been the foundation of the monarchy for centuries. As such, it has always had a prominent place in my local community of Pine Lake. The historic Holy Trinity Anglican Church is one of many local churches across the country that displays the names of community members who served and died for King and country in the two world wars. My hope is that never again will we need to display the names of young men and women in that same fashion on those walls in the name of any monarch. One can only pray for strength and wisdom for ourselves and our new King to serve our nation both wisely in peace but firmly in conflict. What better legacy to follow than that of the young Princess who started her journey in service in her wartorn nation and, as Queen, guided it through so many decades with compassion and grace. Princess Elizabeth said, in 1947 on the occasion of her 21st birthday: I declare before you all that my whole life whether it be long or short shall be devoted to your service and the service of our great imperial family to which we all belong. We are so thankful that her life was long. Long live the King.

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