Hon. Fabian Manning rose pursuant to notice of June 8, 2022:

That he will call the attention of the Senate to the life of Larry Dohey.

He said: Honourable senators, “Life brings tears, smiles and memories. The tears dry, the smiles fade, but the memories last forever.”

With this thought in mind, I welcome the opportunity today, here in the Senate of Canada, to pay tribute to the life and contribution of Larry Dohey, who, through his work as an archivist, historian and volunteer, became a true patriot of Newfoundland and Labrador.

On August 26, 2019, Larry was doing what he loved most — giving an address in the town of Placentia to a group of visitors from Ireland. Together with more than a hundred local people, the visitors had come together to celebrate the Newfoundland-Irish connection. Halfway through his speech, Larry suddenly fell ill. Two days later, on August 28, Larry passed away, leaving an incredible void within his family and, indeed, every region of our province.

I would like to take this opportunity to welcome several members of Larry’s family who have joined us here today, including Larry’s husband and best friend, Ian Martin. I sincerely appreciate all of you taking the time to travel to Ottawa to be a part of my tribute to Larry.

On October 23, 1959, Larry Dohey was born in the small fishing community of St. Bride’s in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, one of thirteen children born to Clem and Loretta Dohey. He grew up in a region of our province known as the Cape Shore, which consisted of a large Irish Catholic population, where he was surrounded by those who told of our history and culture through songs and stories. Through these early experiences, Larry inherited a rich oral culture that on his life’s journey would propel him to be one of the most sought‑after historians in our province.

Following his high school graduation from Fatima Academy in St. Bride’s, Larry attended university in St. John’s, where he earned a BA in Religious Studies and Philosophy. He followed that with a Master of Divinity from the University of Toronto and St. Augustine’s Seminary. As well, he received a pontifical degree from Rome when studying at Saint Paul University here in Ottawa.

In the early 1980s, Larry began working for the Monitor, a newspaper published by the Roman Catholic Church of Newfoundland and Labrador that ran from 1934 to 2003. He contributed to the paper as a writer, handled distribution and publishing and later became the paper’s editor.

Beginning in 1994, as he was working at the archdiocese, Larry took archives courses and worked part-time as an archivist for the large archdiocesan collection. He would eventually go on to become director of the Basilica Museum — Mullock Library. It was here that Larry started a daily pattern of arranging and describing collections, seeking out facts in the numerous documents and writings.

In 2004, with a list of select email addresses, and in 2006, with articles he wrote for the Downhome magazine, Larry set out to increase provincial interest in archives. With an array of email addresses he had collected throughout the years, he began sending out interesting stories of our province to his list of contacts. Soon, Larry was receiving numerous calls to his office on a weekly basis from people asking to be added to these group emails. Through Larry’s passion for our province and his determination to inform us of our rich and storied past, he was quickly becoming a household name for his expertise on all things Newfoundland and Labrador.

With this solid job experience and boundless energy, Larry was soon recognized by another employer. In October of 2010, Larry moved across the street from the Basilica Museum to The Rooms Provincial Archives Division as Manager of Collections and Special Projects. It was in this domain that Larry’s audience continued to expand, and he became known not as a gatekeeper but as a very knowledgeable person who was more than willing to share information about the contents of our archives with fellow archivists, librarians, all types of researchers and any individual who reached out seeking answers to our province’s history or that of their own family roots.

In 2011, Larry’s extensive email list grew to become an online blog called “Archival Moments” which was a reflection of his interest in the colourful and rich archival history of Newfoundland and Labrador. Larry dug deep into the annals of the archives, and relayed his findings in an interesting and informative way. People from all around the world were contacting and visiting Larry, seeking information and knowing full well that they would be treated with the utmost respect, professionalism and, always, a nice cup of Tetley tea.

The year 2016 was vital to Larry’s development and growth. Larry’s knowledge of the provincial archives collection, his skill in bringing the stories of the past to life and his warm and welcoming personality led to his appointment at The Rooms as director of programming and public engagement. This was a position of increased responsibility. With this opportunity, Larry had found his station in life, and we would all be the beneficiaries of his total commitment to the task at hand. Larry would dedicate the remainder of his life to preserving the history and heritage of Newfoundland and Labrador. In 2016, a highlight for him was a visit to The Rooms by Princess Anne, as well as his own colour commentary on Canadian television about the July 1 commemorations and the exhibits that Princess Anne visited that day.

In 2016, it also marked the one-hundredth anniversary of a dark chapter of our province’s history, the Battle of Beaumont‑Hamel, where, on the morning of July 1, 1916, the courageous and brave men of the Royal Newfoundland Regiment crossed the battlefield in France — and, of over 800 soldiers, more than 700 were killed, wounded or missing. Only 68 of them answered the roll call the next day. Larry conducted extensive research on the battle itself, on those who lost their lives and the many human interest stories that came from it. Larry was called upon numerous times by local and national media to talk about this historic event in our province’s history. His knowledge of the details of that tragedy, and the way he relayed the stories of that fateful day, enriched our understanding of that very sad event in the history of our province. Many people began to refer to Larry as a walking encyclopedia of all things Newfoundland and Labrador.

In the fall of 2016, Larry took his “Archival Moments” to our local VOCM radio station. With Larry as host, interacting with producer Brian O’Connell, the wonderful stories of our past were brought forward in a way that seemed to be in the present. Larry took our historical facts that, for all intents and purposes, were lost in time, and he brought them to the present day. He had a very unique and special way of telling our stories. When Larry spoke, everyone listened. He engaged the community like no other. He was a superb storyteller, and he had the ability to make one feel that they were part of the story he was telling at the time, even if it was about an event that had happened decades before. He brought the past to the present, and taught us so much about ourselves. He was one of a kind.

Upon Larry’s passing, Brian O’Connell said Larry Dohey:

. . . was a good friend and a great promoter of all things Newfoundland and Labrador. It was an honour to have produced the Archival Moments program for VOCM with Larry. He put faces and names to our shared history. I will miss him.

Brian went on to say, “He was a real patriot, a real Newfoundlander.”

Larry and Ian loved to travel, and while going through customs, the customs officers would often ask, “What do you work at?” Larry would answer that he was an archivist. Regardless of the country they would be travelling in at the time, most customs officers would follow up with the question, “What is that?” Larry would respond, “I am the keeper of the records.”

Larry had an incredible desire to increase the understanding of what the archives were and what archivists actually did. To Larry, the archives were not just a collection of old documents, photographs and finding aids. To Larry, the archives were a letter a six-year-old boy wrote when he donated the dollar prize he won at school to help build the National War Memorial in St. John’s 100 years ago. It was the story of a teenage soldier whose son found his father’s records and regained his dad. It’s the diaries, letters and notes that gave context to the artifacts and paintings displayed at The Rooms where Larry combined the traditional duties of archivist with something like that of a concert promoter. Even though his official job description at The Rooms was director of programming and public engagement, many still called him “the archivist,” and he never did correct them. It was a title that he loved.

Larry left the province he loved all that much richer from the stories he celebrated online, on-air and in person. His name can be found in the acknowledgements of scores of books, articles, films, documentaries, plays and theses. Along with his work, Larry gave freely of his time and knowledge as he volunteered at countless national, provincial and local boards, organizations and causes, especially those that were promoting and preserving our history and culture. He served on both the national and provincial archives associations, serving in the position of president of the Association of Newfoundland and Labrador Archives from 1995 to 1999, and again from 2003 to 2006. He was a member of both the board of directors of Destination St. John’s and the Irish Newfoundland Association. He was also a member of the Bannerman Park and Victoria Park revitalization committees. At one time, he served as vice-president of the Newfoundland & Labrador Historical Society, the oldest historical group in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Larry played a pivotal role in the research for the development of the Home from The Sea Sealers Memorial located in the town of Elliston, Newfoundland. As a show of appreciation and thanks for generously giving so much of his time and knowledge to this world-class project, the group responsible for the memorial have placed a memory board at the site in honour of Larry’s contribution. Part of it reads as follows:

Without Larry, the Sealers Memorial would have been incomplete and inaccurate. Larry’s meticulous research uncovered misidentifications and inaccuracies based on ships’ rolls, uncovering stories that without him would have been irrevocably lost. We lost Larry far too early, but we will never forget his contribution.

Larry was well-known for bringing enthusiasm, and a bundle of energy, to everything he became involved in. He approached 8 a.m. Monday morning and 5 p.m. Friday evening with equal amounts of joy. He believed in the love of family, hard work, the importance of fun and the power of “yes.” Even though he went about his work each day in his quiet and unassuming manner, he was a force to be reckoned with. He was a true living example of the pen being mightier than the sword.

Larry was a very humble human being, and was not a person for self-promotion at any level. When word of his passing began to spread across our province, there was a huge outpouring of emotion, which was expressed in online blogs, local radio and television coverage, national news coverage and all social media platforms. I would like to share some of those comments with you to show you the lasting impact that Larry has had.

Anne Chafe, interim CEO at The Rooms at the time, said, “We’re profoundly saddened this morning by the loss of our dear colleague and friend . . . .”

She continued:

He spread the word of The Rooms far and wide and he was just an outstanding ambassador for the work that we do.

Jack Harris, former member of Parliament for St. John’s East, said Larry’s death was:

. . . a big loss to our community and province. Larry was a delightful friend and consummate warehouse of stories and knowledge of our history and culture.

Rick Mercer said:

What a huge loss. Could anyone love the province and its history more? Archival Moments on VOCM was a treasure. RIP Mr. Dohey.

Terry Sutton, who worked at the basilica archives with Larry and who helped him with the launch of “Archival Moments”, had this to say:

Larry was a humble and enthusiastic servant to the past and to the people who wanted to learn about it. He leaves behind a hole no one can fill, a sadness we’ll always endure and a joy we’ll always feel.

Mark Critch said:

I’m gutted at the loss of @LarryDohey. He was gentle, funny and, above all, that rare thing these days — kind. Larry not only knew more than anyone about our history, Larry could make anyone want to learn more about it. He was one of our best.

Mark also went on to say:

Larry Dohey will meet St Peter. St Peter will say come in. And Larry will say, “before I do — would you like to hear an interesting story about that gate?”

Last, but by no means least, because there were hundreds of beautiful personal tributes to Larry, Joan Ritcey, former president of the board of the Newfoundland & Labrador Historical Society, had this to say about Larry:

Through his media work, he made Newfoundland and Labrador history more widely interesting to the general public; through his job as a trained archivist, he uncovered long buried information and went out of his way to facilitate other people’s research; through his professional development work for his peers, he was a builder of archival standards; and through his broad outreach, he was a builder of community heritage memorials. His work has been an inspiration and it will carry dividends for the country into the future.

That pretty well sums up Larry’s incredible and lasting legacy.

Very fittingly, Larry’s funeral mass was held at the Basilica of St. John the Baptist in St. John’s on September 2, 2019, where it was estimated that some 3,000 people were in attendance. Interest was so great that close to 300 people were left standing.

Larry’s brother, Father Wayne Dohey, presided over the mass that day, and during his beautiful homily, he spoke of Larry as a great advocate of our history and culture, a great champion of our province and in the words of our First Nations, he was “the bearer of knowledge.” He spoke of the great gift Larry was to our family, our province and our country. He said that we should be the things we love the most about the people who are gone:

Be kind, be bright, be a friend and be yourself and the world will love you for it. There is no doubt that Larry Dohey was himself. He loved the church, but he walked his own path.

When Larry passed, it was a tremendous loss to everyone, especially to his family — one which we still feel in our hearts today, and will do so forevermore. Larry was a teacher in so many ways — teaching us all the importance of accepting people for who they really are, always being proud of where you come from and that, above all else, in a world where you can be anything you want to be, be kind to each other. He taught us that true love never comes to an end. Larry lives on in the wonderful and treasured memories we all have of his journey here on this earth. We know now how blessed we have been to have shared that journey with Larry.

In Newfoundland and Labrador, there is a special little flower called the forget-me-not, which is often worn as a sign of respect for fallen soldiers. The flower has become a true sign of admiration and respect for others and is available to the public in a wide range of ways, such as lapel pins, which all the family members are wearing today in memory of Larry.

I am honoured today to be wearing Larry’s forget-me-not tie. It was a gift given to me by Ian. I had difficulty in finding the words to express my sincere gratitude at the time Ian presented it to me. It is with immense pride today that I wear Larry’s tie for the first time. I will treasure it for as long as I live. Thank you, Ian.

Larry won many awards and accolades for his tremendous work during his lifetime, including the Newfoundland and Labrador Historical Society Heritage Fellowship Award. He was also the recipient of what was once known as the Advocacy and Outreach Award, presented annually by the Association of Canadian Archivists. In future, this award will be known as the Larry Dohey Award. What a great way to keep Larry’s memory alive.

I do believe that Larry’s greatest gift was that of his husband and best friend, Ian. Together for 27 years, they travelled and explored the world around us, never missed a family event, and it was always a joy to have them in our company. Larry’s mom, Loretta, would often say, “Thank God for Ian. He keeps Larry on the straight and narrow.”

In closing, I want to say that we are blessed with a library full of wonderful memories of Larry. A kind, gentle and wonderful human being who has left a remarkable legacy that we can all be so proud of.

I will conclude with words from Ian, who without a doubt is the person who knew Larry best. At the time of Larry’s passing, Ian said:

Everything he did, including his work and all his volunteer work, was a way to celebrate Newfoundland and Labrador. He thought every Newfoundlander was an ambassador to the province. He wanted everyone to know what a wonderful place this is.

He went on to say:

He never believed in saying no to people. . . . He gave fully of his time. . . . He was just so kind to everyone. . . .

Indeed, he was. May he rest in peace. Thank you.

Senator Gold: Thank you for the question. I will have to make inquiries with regard to when we might expect those, and I will be happy to report back.

Senator Gold: Thank you. I will certainly make inquiries, and I will respond back to the Senate with the answer that I can provide as quickly as I can provide it.

[Translation]

Senator Duncan: Thank you to the Government Representative for that answer. Would you please provide us with a written answer that details the recommendations that were made after this initial review? These recommendations that were done do not appear to be public, and the committee has not had a chance to look at them. Would you please provide us with a written answer detailing the recommendations, and also when those recommendations might be made public?

Hon. Donald Neil Plett (Leader of the Opposition): Senator Gold, under the Trudeau government, Canadian streets are less safe, and that is a fact. We see this reflected in a recent report from Statistics Canada which shows the national homicide rate has increased for a third consecutive year. Moreover, nearly one quarter of killings in 2021 were connected to gangs. Without a doubt, this displays your government’s utter failure to address the gang problem that has been steadily growing over the last four years.

Senator Gold, does your government acknowledge that its soft approach on crime has facilitated this increase, and does it take any responsibility for all of the harm inflicted on innocent Canadians?

Senator Plett: If the government acts responsibly, that would mean they would start to act responsibly, not continue to. We have seen no evidence of any of that in the last seven years.

Senator Gold: The government’s suite of measures that it has introduced to reform the criminal justice system — to crack down on the illegal importation and sale of drugs, and the illegal use of assault weapons — are designed to make Canadians feel safer. They are designed to be responsible responses to a serious social problem. The government will continue to act responsibly to that end.

The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, I wish to draw your attention to the presence in the gallery of Denise Pictou‑Maloney. She is the guest of the Honourable Senator Audette.

On behalf of all honourable senators, I welcome you to the Senate of Canada.

The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, I wish to draw your attention to the presence in the gallery of Dr. Andrew Furey, Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador.

On behalf of all honourable senators, I welcome you to the Senate of Canada.

Hon. Senators: Hear, hear!

The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, I wish to also draw your attention to the presence in the gallery of Camilla Daun Rizzi, Zoe Côté, Radia Sentissi and Philippe Trancart. They are the guests of the Honourable Senator Audette.

On behalf of all honourable senators, I welcome you to the Senate of Canada.

Some Hon. Senators: Hear, hear.

The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, I wish to draw your attention to the presence in the gallery of the Kamengo Cultural Troupe from Uganda. They are the guests of the Honourable Senator Bovey.

On behalf of all honourable senators, I welcome you to the Senate of Canada.

Senator Gold: I have to admit that I don’t have a direct answer to your question. The reason why the government asked the provinces to share their data is clearly because what we had was inadequate to best serve Canadians. That said, I’ll inquire with the government and try to obtain a more direct answer to your question. Thank you.

[English]

Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate): Thank you for your question, and for the confidence that you have in me to have the answers at hand. Regrettably, I don’t, but I will certainly make inquiries and report back.

Hon. Pierre J. Dalphond introduced Bill S-256, An Act to amend the Canada Post Corporation Act (seizure) and to make related amendments to other Acts.

(Bill read first time.)

The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, when shall this bill be read the second time?

(On motion of Senator Dalphond, bill placed on the Orders of the Day for second reading two days hence.)

[English]

Hon. Raymonde Gagné (Legislative Deputy to the Government Representative in the Senate): Honourable senators, pursuant to the order adopted December 7, 2021, I would like to inform the Senate that Question Period with the Honourable Patty Hajdu, P.C., M.P., Minister of Indigenous Services and Minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Northern Ontario, will take place on Thursday, November 24, 2022, at 2:30 p.m.

[Translation]

The Senate proceeded to consideration of the first report of the Standing Senate Committee on Official Languages (Subject matter of Bill C-13, An Act to amend the Official Languages Act, to enact the Use of French in Federally Regulated Private Businesses Act and to make related amendments to other Acts), tabled in the Senate on November 17, 2022.

Hon. Jim Quinn: Will the senator take a question?

Senator Brazeau: Absolutely.