It is an honour to rise in this House this afternoon and a true pleasure for me to pay tribute to a former community ambassador, a remarkable parliamentarian and a great family man: the former member of provincial Parliament from the riding of Durham Centre, Mr. Drummond White.

Born in 1951, Mr. White grew up in Oshawa. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in social work, followed by a master’s degree in social work, and I believe his post-secondary institutions included two stints at the University of Toronto, Wilfrid Laurier and York. He also received a research diploma in social work from the University of Toronto.

Prior to entering politics, he began what would amount to a 35-year career in social work. As a family counsellor and a social worker, his work focused on mediation and family assessment.

He met the love of his life, Norah Love, while the two were students in the late 1960s, and the two were married in 1972. Married for over 50 years, their courtship followed by their marriage was a true love story of over half a century. They have three adult children; Amanda, partnered with Brad; Devin, partnered with Alli; and Lenore, partnered with Brandon. These unions produced six wonderful grandchildren: Arya, Maisie, Ezra, Wilton, Ophelia and Miles.

It was Drummond’s drive and commitment to serve his community that brought him into politics, resulting in his election to the provincial Parliament in 1990. He was elected as a member of the Bob Rae NDP government. Among other assignments, he was appointed parliamentary assistant to the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing. In December 1992, MPP White moved a resolution advocating for the creation of a regulatory body for social workers in Ontario. At that time, Ontario was the only province that did not have such a regulatory body for social workers. A spokesman for the Ministry of Social Services at that time said that such legislation for social work was a low priority for that government.

While Drummond was not successful in getting a bill passed during his time as MPP, a similar bill was enacted in the next provincial Parliament named the Social Work and Social Service Work Act. This was enacted by the Mike Harris PC government in 1998. Drummond was the final witness and speaker before the legislative committee that dealt with that bill and was obviously very pleased when this legislation was finally enacted.

After leaving politics following the 1995 election, Drummond returned to his profession as a social worker. In 1996, he served as co-chair to the Durham Region Coalition for Social Justice. He also participated in other Durham advocacy groups such as Save Our Schools and Save Our Shores. He later joined the board of the Canadian Association of Social Workers. In 2008, he was elected secretary-treasurer. In 2005, he had been chosen as the Ontario recipient of the Canadian Association of Social Workers’s Distinguished Service Award. Drummond White was also on the board of the Ontario Association of Social Workers and was elected vice-president in charge of social and professional advocacy.

I was proud to know Drummond White personally. I think that the best way to describe him, after considering all the formalities and an impressive resumé, is to state simply that he was a good man and a good citizen. As a member of provincial Parliament for Durham Centre and a lifetime community activist, what an incredible life Drummond White lived, what an example he set, what a model for his community.

In later years, he was an active member of the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Durham, where he took on leadership roles and served as a lay chaplain for many years. What better way to honour his life of service than as best we can by following his example to live a life of love, caring, kindness, love of family, respect and civility for others and advocacy for worthy causes.

My friend, the member for Whitby—the successor riding to Durham Centre—Lorne Coe shared with me a fitting recommendation to remember Drummond by, as he was very proud of his Scottish heritage. The Epitaph on a Friend by Robbie Burns contains these memorable words:

An honest man here lies at rest,

The friend of man, the friend of truth,

The friend of age, and guide of youth;

Few hearts like his, of virtue warm’d,

Few heads with knowledge so inform’d;

If there’s another world, he lives in bliss;

If there is none, he made the best of this.

On behalf of all members of the government caucus, I salute the late Drummond White for his service to our community of Durham region, a community that he called home very proudly. I would also like to thank his family—and, Lenore, you’re here on behalf of the family—for sharing him with us, with the province of Ontario, as a dedicated member of provincial Parliament from 1990 to 1995. Thank you.