Hon. Kim Pate: Thank you for the privilege and responsibility of allowing me to rise to express my profound admiration, appreciation, respect, awe, love and gratitude to and for our dear colleague and my beloved seatmate.

One month ago we celebrated one of your most recent recognitions, the awarding of your fifth honorary doctorate by Queen’s University. Today, we have the challenging and somewhat heartbreaking task of honouring you as you take your leave of this place to which you have contributed your outstanding and unparalleled First Nations leadership and your countless contributions with and for Indigenous peoples that has always been rooted in the context of kindness, compassion and love, and always in such a calm, quiet, caring manner and so wisely.

When I first visited Membertou First Nation, it was with your cousin Junior Marshall, and the community was struggling on the brink of bankruptcy. Dan’s leadership — your leadership — has been well recognized, as we just heard from so many, as the driving force in helping Membertou flourish into a thriving and vibrant community.

When I had the privilege of last visiting Membertou, you were incredibly and so characteristically generous and took the time to show me around and introduce me to the many folks who so warmly greeted their Senator Dan, whether in your home, Senate office at the mall, the cultural centre, anywhere and everywhere we ventured into the community.

Sitting beside you here and with you in the Indigenous Peoples Committee, I have learned and grown thanks to your brilliant interventions, quiet but oh-so-clear leadership, calm diplomacy and effective advocacy. I love how you are always guided by immense kindness, seemingly endless compassion and patience and your very generous heart.

You are the epitome of inspirational leadership, coalition building and courageous advocacy as all your life you have worked tirelessly to address the persistent challenges that too many face in the hands of discriminatory attitudes and systems that persist.

I’m so grateful to have had the opportunity to meet your beloved and so lovely and talented Dozay and your equally talented and fabulous children and precious grandchildren. Thank you for joining us here today, Peter, Lacey, Rawlin, Arya, Gail and wee Wastow. We owe you, all of your family and community, an immense debt of appreciation for sharing your spectacular tata’t and umijgamijl with us for these last six years. We will miss him, his profound wisdom, his clear, kind, patient and thoughtful ideas and the incredible example and inspiration he is to each and all of us. Wela’lin, chi-meegwetch, thank you.