The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, I wish to draw your attention to the presence in the gallery of Senator Christmas’ children Peter, Lacey and Gail, as well as his grandchildren Rawlin and Arya.

On behalf of all honourable senators, I welcome you to the Senate of Canada.

Hon. Yvonne Boyer: Honourable senators, I’m pleased to be here today to pay tribute to Senator Dan Christmas. We all know the impact that serving in the Senate can have on our families, especially those who must travel to Ottawa from far parts of the country. So today, I would like to begin this tribute by taking a minute to thank Senator Christmas’s children, Peter, Lacey and Gail, as well as his grandchildren, Rawlin and Arya. To them, on behalf of all senators, I say thank you for sharing your father and grandfather with us and all of Canada. His work has truly made a difference, and we are beyond fortunate to have benefitted from his wisdom and contributions for all these years.

Senator Christmas’s accomplishments during both his time in the Senate and his prior life just can’t be fit into a three-minute tribute. Through his work on legislation to implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in Canada and as chair and deputy chair of the Standing Senate Committee on Indigenous Peoples, Senator Christmas played a significant role in shaping some of the most important legislation impacting Indigenous peoples and, indeed, all of Canada. He leaves not just shoes but gigantic shoes to fill.

I would also like to take a minute to talk about Senator Christmas as a community leader — an advocate of the Mi’kmaq community of Membertou in Nova Scotia. He is so dedicated to his community and his people that he has spent his entire professional life serving them in countless different capacities. For instance, I had the opportunity to visit Membertou in July of 2019 to talk with his community about the issue of forced and coerced sterilization. As I’m sure all senators can imagine, meetings on this issue are difficult and emotional. Throughout this meeting and in the conversations afterwards, I was able to see just how connected he was with his community and the respect and admiration he gave them and that he, in turn, received from them.

Senator Christmas will be remembered for many things, but for me, I will remember how, more than anything else, he was always there for his community and ready to tackle the tough questions and help in any way that he could.

Now, after serving his nation and indeed all First Nations, Métis and Inuit across Canada, he can go back to focusing on the most important job of all, and that is being a father and a grandfather. Chi-Meegwetch, my friend. I wish you well.