44th Parl. 1st Sess.
November 3, 2023 10:00AM
- Nov/3/23 11:06:55 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, this November, we celebrate Lebanese Heritage Month and the rich culture of Lebanon, its generous and hard-working people and their contribution to making our communities vibrant and prosperous.
Thousands of Lebanese call my community of Windsor—Tecumseh home, and because of that, my hometown boasts some of the best festivals and food in Canada. Whether it is the annual St. Ignatius and St. Peter's festivals or the bounty of restaurants such as Souq, Hamoudi's, Mazaar, Al-Sabeel or Tabouli, our Lebanese community proudly shares its rich heritage.
It is also a community of dedicated doctors, nurses, teachers, artists, athletes and entrepreneurs. Yesterday, the founders of Cedar Valley, our local manufacturer of fattoush salad dressing and authentic Lebanese-style pita chips, were featured on CBC's Dragon's Den.
Let us deepen our appreciation of the priceless contribution that Lebanese Canadians make to our Canadian mosaic. To everyone back home, Kulluna lil-watan, lil'ula lil-'alam.
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- Nov/3/23 2:18:20 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, as a proud Polish Canadian, I am so honoured to rise in the House of Commons to speak to the rich history, heritage and contributions of Polish Canadians to Canada and to the rich and vibrant multicultural tapestry of our country.
I will begin by giving a heartfelt dziękuję, or thanks, to my friend and colleague, the MP for Mississauga East—Cooksville, for bringing forward this historic legislation that will establish the first-ever national Polish heritage month in Canada.
There are 1.1 million Canadians of Polish descent living in Canada in communities in every corner of our country, including major centres such as Halifax, Montreal, Ottawa, Vancouver, Toronto, Hamilton, Winnipeg and Calgary, as well as my community of Windsor—Tecumseh. Polish Canadians are business leaders, teachers, nurses, engineers, electricians, artists and athletes. They drive trucks that deliver goods. They are as resilient and determined as they are generous and kind, and they have been a blessing to this country, just as Canada has been a blessing to us.
The story of Polish immigration to Canada is remarkable, and it provides insight into a community that prides itself on the values of service above self and that prioritizes family, community and faith. The first Polish immigrant, a fur trader, landed in Canada in 1752, but the first wave of Polish immigrants to Canada arrived in 1858 from the Kashub region of northern Poland. They made their home in Renfrew County in the Town of Wilno, the oldest Polish settlement in Canada. For two centuries, subsequent waves of Polish Canadians arrived in Canada, at times to flee conflict and persecution, and always to build a better future for themselves and for their children. The Polish-Canadian story is a quintessential Canadian story, and it is one I want to tell from the perspective of my family and our Polish community in Windsor.
Back in Poland, my father was an electrical engineer and a leader in the solidarity movement, which fought for the rights of workers against the Communist dictatorship. Minutes past midnight on December 13, 1981, martial law was declared, solidarity leaders were rounded up and the police arrived at our door to arrest my father. After his release, Canada offered us safe harbour; in April 1983, we landed at Pearson airport. We spent the first year in Scarborough, in an apartment block with Polish families who arrived the same way we did. My parents took English language courses at George Brown College during the day. My dad laid tile during the evenings to save up for a car and to buy his boys their first Christmas gift in Canada: hockey sticks. Within a year, my dad landed a job in the auto industry in Windsor, so we barrelled down the 401 with hearts full of hope, gratitude and a little trepidation about the road ahead.
For Polish Canadians, like so many immigrants, their gratitude finds expression in an enormous sense and need to give back, to volunteer, to help build our Canada and the communities that have become our homes. I see the expression of this in my community of Windsor—Essex, which is home to a vibrant community of 12,000 Polish Canadians. The heart of our community has always been Holy Trinity Roman Catholic Church on the corner of Langlois and Ellis. It is where my brother and I were quickly enrolled as altar servers. It is where we celebrate Pasterka, or midnight mass, and where I married my better half, Shauna.
Saturday mornings were spent attending Polish school at St. Angela Catholic Elementary School, with wonderful teachers, such as Pani Bochus, Pani Zechaluk and sisters Mary and Urszula from the Ursuline Sisters. They made sure we kept the Polish language alive. They taught Polish history, telling us about Copernicus, Marie Curie Sklodowska and the Battle of Grunwald. We learned about Janusz Zurakowski, the test pilot for the Avro Arrow and the first Canadian to break the sound barrier. We learned about Sir Casimir Gzowski, an engineer who helped build the Grand Trunk Railway and the Welland Canal, whom Canada Post put on the five-cent stamp. We learned about Stanley Haidasz, a doctor, a member of Parliament, the first minister of state for multiculturalism and the first senator of Polish descent.
After Sunday morning mass at Holy Trinity, we would stop by Blak's Bakery for fresh rye bread and strudel. Blak's is the oldest bakery in Windsor. It opened in 1918. On Fat Tuesday, there are lineups around the block to get a box of their famous plum-filled paczki. At the same time, we would head over to the European Market or Polish Village Deli to pick up deli meats, pierogi or kielbasa for the barbecue.
Polish Canadians are incredibly industrious and entrepreneurial. In addition to shops and restaurants that brought colour and flavour to Ottawa Street, there were Polish-owned factories that provided thousands of jobs for local residents for generations. Companies like Victoria Steel, White Eagle Press, Gorski Transport and NARMCO started by the Bas, Polewski, Rodzik and Gorski families who gave back to the community in many ways. Just last week, I attended the reopening of the University of Windsor law school building that underwent generational renovations, funded in part by the generous contribution of the Rodzik family.
Indeed, Polish Canadians are known for their honest and hard work as skilled machinists, electricians and engineers. Many rose to positions that shaped local industry especially our vital auto sector. Mr. Puklich as the plant manager of the Windsor-Essex Ford engine plant and Mr. Frank Ewasyshyn as the vice-president of Chrysler are just two examples.
However, outside the business world, the Polish community made tremendous contributions through the arts, culture and sport. Dom Polski, or the Polish Hall, was the hub of cultural life in our community, the place where theatre productions were held, where the Tatry dance ensemble performed, and where weddings and celebrations took place. Dom Polski is also where each year the Polish community throws open its doors, hosting a Polish village that draws thousands of local residents for live music, dancing and great Polish food as part of the annual carrousel of the nation's celebrations.
This year, the Polonia centre sports club celebrated its 40th anniversary, thanks to the dedication of volunteers like Mr. Kowalczykowski and Mr. Sak, who coached players of all ages and backgrounds from across Windsor-Essex.
The incredible spirit of volunteerism drives the Polish community. It is who we are. I am proud to say my parents, Marta and Richard, were part of a long tradition of volunteers and leaders who gave their time and energy to organizations like the Polonia Centre that organized and raised funds for educational and cultural events that brought community together.
The Polonia centre set up annual scholarships for students from all backgrounds attending post-secondary school. An annual fund was set up to help the University of Windsor purchase books for the Leddy Library. That sense of solidarity extends far beyond the community. When natural disasters like floods hit Canada and around the world, the community quickly mobilized to raise funds.
When 9/11 hit, the community even sent a letter to the mayor of New York with a cheque for $5,000 to support victims' families. Two years ago, when Russia invaded Ukraine, the community quickly organized a pasta and pierogi dinner and raised over $30,000 for Ukrainians and Ukraine.
Solidarity and hospitality go hand in hand. There is an old saying in Polish.
[Member spoke in Polish and provided the following translation:]
That means when a guest is in the house, God is in the house.
[English]
That is why we saw hundreds of thousands of Poles opening their apartments to 1.5 million Ukrainian refugees fleeing the war. It is the Polish thing to do when their neighbour calls for help.
A terrific example of the combination of solidarity, and hospitality was the building of Polonia Park in 1980, a neighbourhood containing 342 affordable and attainable townhouses that the Polish community constructed thanks to Monsignor Lawrence Wnuk and visionary volunteers like Jan Partyka, Jan Armata, Stan Niec, Mitch Puklicz and the Bas and Polewski families. It was pioneering, decades ahead of its time, and it went a long way to make sure all Canadians in Windsor could find an affordable place to live in dignity and with pride. I know, because Polonia Park afforded my family our first home in Windsor.
Service to community is a huge part of our Polish heritage; so too is service to our country. The same Dom Polski that hosted weddings and Polish theatre was also the home of the Polish army in North America during the Second World War and a recruitment centre for Polish volunteers heading to Europe. In 1917, the Government of Canada opened the Polish army training camp called Camp Kosciuszko in Niagara-on-the-Lake, under General Jozef Haller where 2,200 volunteers were trained to fight as the Polish Blue Army in the First World War.
Throughout history, Poland and Canada have been brothers in arms in major battles like the Battle of Britain and Montecassino where Polish and Canadian soldiers now rest together in cemeteries of honour.
Last week I had a chance to reflect upon my family's story and how our single thread weaves itself into the beautiful fabric of the Polish Canadian story in Canada. I attended a citizenship ceremony for 49 new Canadians who arrived in Canada from 18 different countries. I saw in their eyes their happiness, hope and promise and, above all, their incredible feeling of gratitude. It fills people's hearts knowing that they are Canadians, knowing that Canada is their home.
I am proud of my Polish heritage. I am proud to be a Polish Canadian. With everyone's help, my dear colleagues, we will have a Polish heritage month to celebrate a long-standing and colourful piece of that beautiful Canadian mosaic together.
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