Hon. Raymonde Saint-Germain: Honourable senators, with leave of the Senate, and notwithstanding rule 5-5(j), I move:

That, notwithstanding any provision of the Rules or usual practice, for today’s sitting, the duration for Senators’ Statements be 45 minutes, to be used for the purpose of paying tribute to our colleague the Honourable Senator Christmas, not including the time for his response.

Hon. Raymonde Saint-Germain: Colleagues, I want to begin by greeting our colleague Dan Christmas’s visitors who are with us today: his three children and two grandchildren. I also want to tell them how proud they should be of their father and grandfather.

It is with a heavy heart that I rise today to pay tribute to my esteemed colleague, Senator Dan Christmas, on his last day in this chamber.

[English]

It is indeed with a heavy heart that I speak today — heavy, because everyone who got to know Senator Christmas throughout the years can testify to the greatness of his spirit and his profoundly human character.

Dear Dan, for this, as well as for your undeniable qualities as a senator, you will be greatly missed. Since your appointment to the Senate in 2016, you have proudly represented the Mi’kmaq community as well as your province of Nova Scotia. However, we all know that your commitment to both go back far beyond your years as a senator.

Prior to your life in the Senate, you were already a leader and an organizer for the Membertou community and your people of Cape Breton Island. Indeed, they are happy to have you back full-time, and so are your three children and two grandchildren, who have many reasons to be proud of you as their dad and granddad.

If I had to describe Senator Christmas in only a few words, it would be as a man of heart and family. Due to fate, you had to make the choice to stay close to your people and fulfill your most important responsibilities — those to your family. While we are saddened to see you go, we can only admire the decision that you are formalizing today. As a very committed member of the Independent Senators Group, you have been a great pedagogue, a man of dialogue and mediation who, with a good reading of the environment, helped us work towards reconciliation and the understanding, as well as recognition, of important Indigenous issues.

Always a team player, a sound advisor and a very patient senator, it was truly a pleasure working alongside you. Please know, Senator Christmas, that you will be remembered within our group as a great connector between peoples.

As a member and Chair of the Standing Senate Committee on Indigenous Peoples, you have contributed to impactful studies that are more than necessary on the difficult road to reconciliation in this country. You will have left your mark on this committee, and we will do our best to pursue your legacy, knowing full well that we have big shoes to fill.

Senator Christmas, while we understand and respect your decision, it is still a loss for the Senate. However, I would rather see it as a gain for your family and your community. Today, they regain a natural leader and a great family man. I wish you, on behalf of all of the members of the Independent Senators Group, a happy retirement from the Senate of Canada.

Hon. Raymonde Saint-Germain: Honourable senators, I, too, want to wish a merry Christmas to our big Senate family, to senators of all stripes, to our office staff, to the Senate Administration teams, to our chamber team, which is also very important to us, as well as to the members of the Parliamentary Protective Service and Library of Parliament. Senator Plett said it best: “my Senate family.” I think that, when we started meeting in person again in September, we realized that, together, we make up one big family. As in all families, some members are wiser than others, and some tend to bicker, but in the end, we are a group, a family, that pulls together, stands in solidarity and loves one another. That is a beautiful thing, and I am very happy to be part of this family.

My thoughts are also with the members of our Senate family who are not with us today, either for medical reasons or because they are still in mourning for loved ones they lost this year. Our thoughts are with you, dear colleagues. We hope to see you again in 2023, and we are looking forward to it. We know that this first Christmas without your loved ones will be difficult, and our hearts go out to you.

[English]

I also want to give special thanks to my fellow colleagues in leadership positions: Senator Gold, Senator Plett, Senator Cordy — the other woman — and Senator Tannas. We have had a lot of negotiations to do this year, indeed, some more difficult than others — I would say challenging — but I’m glad to count on your good faith and camaraderie. Having said that, I know a break until February will do us all some good.

I extend respect and gratitude to our Speaker, Senator Furey, for his understanding and diplomatic guidance in the application of our Rules and practices, as well as for preserving decorum and civility in the upper chamber. This also applies to our Speaker pro tempore, Senator Ringuette. To both of you, I truly appreciate your wisdom, dignity and profound knowledge of this institution.

I also want to take a moment to express my deep gratitude to the Independent Senators Group facilitation team. This is a word that we invented in English. To Senators Dean, Petitclerc, Duncan and our new member on the team, Senator Clement, your support every day in order to serve and represent our wonderful group is vital. I’m privileged to have you by my side.

Colleagues, I’m proud of the work we were all able to do this year, whether in the chamber with thoughtful and impactful interventions, in committees with studies and careful consideration of bills or outside the Senate through public engagements.

To our newly appointed senators and very promising colleagues — Senators Burey, Cardozo, Greenwood, Osler, Patterson and Shugart — every senator in this chamber has something unique to contribute. Do not hesitate to bring your contributions forward and keep making the Senate a vibrant place to adequately serve Canadians.

From all members of the Independent Senators Group, enjoy a wonderful holiday season. Rest up, and we’ll see you all next year. Thank you, meegwetch.