Debates of February 1, 2006 (day 20)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today I rise to recognize three well-known and respected northerners who are recent recipients of the National Aboriginal Achievement Awards. It is said, Mr. Speaker, that laughter is the best medicine, and with that being the case then George Tuccaro has been curing many people across the NWT for years.

Hear! Hear!

People in the communities always look forward to a visit from Mr. Tuccaro. My personal favourite is a jigging performance.

Billy Day is a well-respected Inuvialuit elder from Inuvik. He was part of the Committee for Original People’s Entitlement, which was established to protect our culture, political rights, and our lands. They negotiated the Inuvialuit Final Agreement and from that came the Inuvialuit Regional Corporation. He participated in a meeting in California, which resulted in the founding of the World Council of Whalers. Billy still continues to live a traditional lifestyle. Inuvialuit will always be grateful to Billy and the other negotiators for the benefits that we enjoy today.

Shirley Firth-Larson was a member of the NWT Ski Team for years. This group of skiers was started in Inuvik, and they trained in Inuvik, and they put the NWT on the map, as far as I’m concerned. As a young boy growing up, we used to always think the ski team was really deadly because they got to travel all over the world, and we wanted to be just like them, but we were way too slow. We watched the Olympic Games and tried to catch a glimpse of our skiers because we were quite proud of them. She participated in four winter games, she’s received many awards over the years for her skiing.

We congratulate all three of you and would like you to know that, as fellow northerners, we are proud of your accomplishments and your well-deserved award. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

---Applause