Senator Manning: I’m not finished yet. I have one more line.

I will conclude with an old Irish blessing that we are very familiar with back home in Newfoundland and Labrador: Your Honour, may you be in heaven a full half hour before the devil knows you’re dead.

Senator Manning: I’m not finished yet.

Hon. Fabian Manning: Honourable senators, today I am pleased to present Chapter 75 of “Telling Our Story.”

As you are all aware, 75 is a very significant number in this place, and selecting that number for this particular chapter is not a coincidence.

In the past, I have spoken in this chamber about the productive and successful lives of many of my fellow Newfoundlanders and Labradorians — those who have chosen to live and work in the province, and those who have journeyed beyond the rock to make their mark in the world. Today, I am adding another person to that list.

George J. Furey was born on May 12, 1948.

Senator Manning: I hope you are not eating up my time. I will start again.

George J. Furey was born on May 12, 1948, in the beautiful town of Avondale, Newfoundland and Labrador. That was less than a year before Canada joined Newfoundland.

George was one of eight children, with four brothers and three sisters. In the words of George’s son, Andrew, in his book entitled Hope in the Balance, George’s mom, Mary, had a will that was bigger than the judgment of those around her. Her family was her greatest passion.

When George was just six years old, his three sisters went to the Belvedere orphanage in St. John’s, which was, at the time, run by the Sisters of Mercy. George and his brothers went to the Mount Cashel orphanage where his mom got a job working as a cook for the Christian Brothers’ private residence next door to the orphanage. Mary Furey’s family would survive and prosper.

George later attended Memorial University of Newfoundland and Labrador where he received a Bachelor of Arts degree, along with a Bachelor of Education degree, in 1970. These were followed by a Master of Education degree from Memorial University in 1976. During his career as an educator, George was a teacher with the Roman Catholic school board in St. John’s, a supervising vice-principal of the Port-au-Port Roman Catholic School Board and a supervising principal in the town of Dunville with the Placentia-St. Mary’s Roman Catholic School Board.

After a successful career in education, George attended Dalhousie Law School and completed a Bachelor of Laws degree in 1983. He was called to the Bar of the Law Society of Newfoundland & Labrador in 1984 and subsequently named a partner in the St. John’s law firm of O’Brien, Furey & Hurley. While in his second year of practising law, he successfully challenged the Criminal Code language on sexual assault and proved that, with the advent of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, certain Criminal Code provisions were unconstitutional. In 1989, he was named senior partner at the firm O’Brien, Furey & Smith and in 1993 was appointed to the Provincial Police Complaints Commission and subsequently appointed as Queen’s Counsel in 1996.

On the advice of then-prime minister Jean Chrétien, George was appointed to the Senate of Canada on August 11, 1999. He served on many of the standing committees in the Senate, such as Legal and Constitutional Affairs, and as Chair of the Standing Committee on Internal Economy, Budgets and Administration.

On December 3, 2015, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau appointed Senator Furey to the position of the forty-fifth Speaker of the Senate of Canada, the very first person from Newfoundland and Labrador to hold this position. For 24 more days, he will also hold the title of the longest-serving member of the Senate.

I, like many of you, have witnessed our Speaker perform his duties here in Ottawa, in the chamber, throughout our great country of Canada and around the world. He has done so with a high degree of humility, dignity and professionalism, along with a great sense of humour. A few weeks ago, here in Ottawa, during the visit of U.S. President Biden, our Speaker was nothing short of a class act. I feel confident in saying that I believe the words and the eloquent delivery of his speech on the floor of the House of Commons made us all feel very proud to have him represent us during this special event.

Senator Manning: Just last week, during a state visit to the Kingdom of Morocco, which I had the pleasure to participate in along with Senator Ravalia, Senator Coyle, the Usher of the Black Rod and others, our Speaker once again represented our great country with the highest degree of competence and class. His work ethic, communication skills and strong adherence to moral and ethical principles were easily recognized by all the people we encountered during our visit.

I would like to take a moment to add a few personal comments. I knew of Senator Furey a long time before I arrived here in the Senate. The St. John’s law firm that he was part of was also my father’s law firm for many years. I had met the Speaker occasionally throughout that time period, but it was not until I arrived in Ottawa in 2006 as a member of the House of Commons that I had the opportunity to spend time in his company and learn some very valuable lessons along the way.

Now, some of you may be asking how a hardcore Liberal and a diehard Tory get along so well. Well, believe it or not, we have never allowed our political colours or our differences of opinions on certain government policies to come between our friendship: 99% of our chats are about our families, the history of our province and the hopes and dreams we both share for the place we are so fortunate to call our home.

Though there was one such morning when I thought that George was going to come over and join our blue team, but then I woke up from my sleep and realized that it was just a dream.

Mr. Speaker, I realize that the clock is ticking on your time with us. I wish I could move an amendment this afternoon to extend the age requirement that is causing you to leave us in a few weeks when you celebrate your seventy-fifth birthday, but that I cannot do.

What I can do, though, is to sincerely thank you for your steadfast representation and loyal service to the people of our home province of Newfoundland and Labrador and to the people of Canada, including all of us here who have had the privilege and honour to serve with you in the Senate of Canada. In your absence, the Senate will indeed be a different place, but I believe I speak for all of my Senate colleagues when I say you will definitely be missed.

On behalf of all my colleagues, I wish you and your lovely wife, Karen, a future full of great health and happiness as you enjoy the years ahead surrounded by your loving family.

On behalf of my wife, Sandra, and our family, thank you from the bottom of our hearts for a friendship we will cherish for as long as we live. Someone once said that a good friend knows all your stories while a best friend helps you create them. Thank you, Mr. Speaker, for helping me create some great ones along the way.