 Dean no further introductions. It's there for a time for members statements to members from Leeds Granville. Thanks speaker Saturday I attended the North Granville rural summit which put the spotlight on eastern Ontario Entrepreneurs and innovators. It was great to spend time with people creating jobs and bringing investment in our rural communities I wish every Ontarian living in an urban center could have been in Kempville with me on Saturday What an incredible opportunity for them to understand that rural Ontario is more than just the blur They see from the car window as they travel from one city to the next they could see how agribusinesses are succeeding despite challenges like increasing red tape local infrastructure needs high energy prices and access to skilled workers their Perseverance and determination is incredible and I'm thankful that they had the opportunity to share their stories So we could learn more on how we can better support them The summit was the dream of North Granville councillor Jim Bertram a true champion of rural Ontario Jim recognized our rural communities and the businesses sustaining them are too often Take it for granted and he wanted to do something positive to change that Unfortunately speaker Jim is battling an illness and he couldn't be there on Saturday and our thoughts and prayers are with him and his family We wish him speedy recovery speaker. We all know farmers feed cities But with the right support from a government that appreciates them our farmers and rural entrepreneurs can help make Ontario grow I want to thank Jim for his vision. I hope that this summit becomes an annual event in North Granville Thank you for giving me this Thank you Windsor to come see Speaker, let me tell you a little about a good friend of mine. His name is Ron Jones. He's 73 years old and Next month. He'll be graduating with a BA and Pauley Psi from the University of Windsor To appreciate Ron's success We have to go back to his high school years in the 60s at low-tech a football star Ron was asked what he was going to do when he graduated. He said become a city firefighter My guidance counselor Basically told him to the kid about it because he was a black kid and a nobody He'd never be hired as a city firefighter So he could set his sights a little lower perhaps and becoming a garbage collector for the city of Windsor Well being told he couldn't do something was all the motivation. He needed Ron Jones became the second black firefighter in the city of Windsor He served for 35 years retired as a district chief along the way He spent 12 years as a public school board trustee and after retiring from the fire service another 12 years as a city counselor He's battled prostate cancer and now he's all set to graduate with a university degree Not bad for someone who has fought racism most of his life was Howard McCurdy's first campaign manager Got to rub shoulders with icons such as Rosa Parks and Muhammad Ali Speaker Ron Jones still isn't ready to set back and count his blessings He's already enrolled at an accelerated paralegal program at St. Clair College in the fall So Ron buddy, you never failed to amaze me. Here's a salute from Queens Park all the best my friend and God bless Thank you Thank You speaker Speaker April is cancer awareness month spring is the season of renewal and hope an ideal time to reflect on the progress That's been made in the prevention and the treatment of cancer in the 1940s three out of four Canadians with cancer died Within five years of diagnosis Today that statistic has flipped five years after diagnosis 60% of Canadians with cancer are still alive This is incredible progress yet. There is still a large amount of work ahead on average 24 people are diagnosed with cancer every hour in Canada One out of every two Canadians can expect to have a personal battle with cancer during their lifetime And one out of every four Canadians will ultimately die because of cancer Cancer does not discriminate it affects people of all ages and from all walks of life It is not one disease, but many and can affect every part of a body Because of its complexity there will never be a single cure for cancer. That is why research is so important Unfortunately, according to the Canadian Cancer Society 60% of the high priority research projects went unfunded in 2016 as a cancer survivor I encourage everybody to donate to life-saving research To wear your daffodil pins with pride and to work towards a day when people in Ontario and people around the world No longer have to fear cancer. Thank you I lost a friend this week while I considered Bill Ray a friend I didn't socialize with them unless you included the hundreds of community events we attended over the years Bill taking a picture or two Reporting Caledon news for the Caledon citizen We would often compare our schedule for the day Bill joking about how we'd never go north of nine because it was outside of Caledon Bill would probably be called a workaholic, but I'm pretty sure he was doing exactly what he wanted to do Bill was a person interested in and engaged with all things Caledon the last time Bill interviewed me He was supposed to be on vacation and yet he made the call did the interview Wrote and submitted the article all on vacation Always a professional and always willing to put in the hours to make sure the story was accurate I don't know what Bill's political affiliations were and frankly I didn't care I didn't care because he never inserted his opinions into the articles He wrote for Bill. It was about making sure the readers were given the unbiased information They needed to make their own choices We were lucky that Bill chose Caledon as the place to write our stories Share our passions and track our history and for that we have beth to thank it was beth who captured Bill's heart I'm sorry. He won't get the time he deserves to spend with the special lady He met and married in Caledon rest in peace Thank you Member Stevens the member from Algoma Manitoulou. Thank you speaker And I want to introduce you to good people of River Valley Park in the Sioux North area Approximately 35 homes is what you'll find there and these families as of May the 1st are being ordered to vacate their homes From by Algoma public health due to the failure of a non-compliant sewage system and public health concerns now That's a fact mr. Speaker Ministry of Environment Climate Change have been working with the owner to reach compliant They have worked on the draft ECA an environmental compliance approval and identified an FA Which is the financial assurance that is needed. However, the park owner has been unsuccessful in securing these funds That's a fact mr. Speaker. Here's another fact. These are homeowners that own their home and they may Look at this as not a big issue for 35 families But this is a huge issues for people that live in my area We and I say we can do a lot better and we should not permit this to happen And we need to step up to making sure that they are not pushed out of their homes I'm happy to hear that the park owner will be meeting with government officials this week I'm also happy to inform the good people of River Valley Park that I will be meeting with the Minister of Municipal Affairs Northern Development and Mines and the Minister of Environment and Climate Change on Tuesday of next week to discuss it We have to step up and here's another fact There will be a much higher cost and social cost to removing these people out at our homes for the long run for all of us On this issue these families deserve better from this government these family are in my writing about little Manitoulou And we have to help them Thank you speaker and I rise today to showcase the fantastic girls in grade seven and eight at St. Anthony Catholic School and St. Helens Catholic School for my writing of Davenport who took part in the girls government program through my constituency office Girls government is a non-partisan program run by Equal Voice which helps get young girls interested in politics I'm delighted to share with you the bright young women whose work has made this program successful Haley Furtado, Amber Styles, Marion Asher, Alexis Alexou, Sienna Lory, Dinella Latissia, Noelia Ratana, Alexis DeSalle, Ira Nicole Perez, Kassandra Mann, Faith DeKintel, Melissa Roselle, Mifal DeFresco, Christina Riri, Maria Elena DeCruz as well as their teachers Mrs. Irene Rodriguez, Ms. Fiona McGrath, Ms. Laura Negro and Ms. Elisa Rubello Principal Fatima for Marys and Principal Maria Manuela Sardo in Tunes These girls work closely with her teachers, my staff and myself to learn about politics and select an issue to champion They engaged in lively discussions and debates and voted to address homelessness as their issue As residents the girls see the effects of Toronto's affordable housing crisis all around them They further decided to focus their advocacy on how homelessness specifically and disproportionately affects women and indigenous people in Toronto After much research and discussion these bright girls wrote and sent a letter to Minister Milchin indicating their concerns and ideas on the ways to rectify homelessness in Toronto This is my third year running this program and Mr. Speaker the energy from the girls from St. Anthony and St. Helens Catholic School reminded me of the importance of my role as a female politician in this legislature and the first female MPP for the riding of Davenport Thank you. Thank you. Further Member Stainless, the member from the PMC. Thank you very much, Speaker. I rise today in great sadness as many Canadians have After a weekend where we saw not only Jonathan Pete the toughest young man to ever ever come out of Eastern Ontario die from a very painful disease of EB and then to wake up the next morning to find out that 15 young men tragically were killed as they went to play hockey from Humboldt's Saskatchewan. Speaker as a hockey mother myself I have been often inspired by Jonathan Pete and since Saturday inspired by the generosity and compassion of all Canadians I want to just say that I've never seen our country come together quite like this and I grew up in a small mining town that lost 26 miners and I feel very badly for those who have been left behind and who will struggle particularly in Saskatchewan to rebuild their community but Canadians have really stepped up I noticed that millions of dollars have been raised many hockey teams have either provided a moment of silence or even gone one step further for both Jonathan Pete and for the Humboldt Broncos. On the weekend a picture was drawn by Kerry McGregor of Canada which I think tells the entire story of the tragedy that our country is going through by having the Humboldt players reach out in heaven to Jonathan Pete. We've seen Tom Cochran, Chronicle Herald and many others across the the province here and country reach out to all of those who are affected. I know Speaker tomorrow many schools including my daughter's own will be wearing jerseys and I encourage every school in Ontario to make sure that they wear some type of a jersey with a number on it to support this team and I know this legislature has done a moment of silence and I know probably tomorrow will want to wear their jerseys as well and I just want everyone to know that we're in solidarity and to those who started they put your sticks out for the boys. I think that that is a very telling and meaningful way to provide a tribute and some solace and comfort but again on behalf of the residents of Nipi and Carleton and certainly the hockey family which I belong to my heart and my prayers are with Jonathan Pete's family as well as all of those who are affected by the tragedy in Saskatchewan thank you. Thank you for the member of State and the member from Kingston in the islands. Mr. Speaker I'm thrilled to rise today in supportive fetal alcohol awareness advocacy day at Queens Park. We are joined by many advocates from across the province who have worked tirelessly to make this day a reality. Thank you to everyone who attended our reception earlier and for taking the opportunity to have meetings throughout the day. FASD is an umbrella term used to describe a range of cognitive and developmental disorders that are caused by exposure to alcohol in utero. When a woman becomes pregnant alcohol consumption can pose a significant risk to the fetus and result in fetal alcohol syndrome, partial fetal alcohol syndrome, alcohol related neurodevelopmental disorder and alcohol related birth defects. While FASD has proven difficult to diagnose due to its complexity early prevention is key. It is estimated that one out of every 100 people may have FASD meaning that as many as 130,000 Ontarians may be affected. Recent studies suggest that this number may in fact be larger. Last December my motion to establish September 9th is fetal alcohol spectrum disorder awareness day passed unanimously and I thank all members for their support. Shortly I will be introducing my bill to help support students living with FASD in schools. This bill serves to complement the motion by encouraging boards to establish best practices and foster greater collaboration. There is more work to be done. Today is about learning from those with lived experience, parents, families, friends and organizations, but it is a single step in a movement that's been a result of literally hundreds of individuals and hundreds of hours coming together over decades. Let's keep it going. Merci. Thank you. Thank you. New member statements. The member from Bruce Gray. Thank you very much Mr. Speaker. What an honor for me to rise today and recognize the Community Foundation Gray Bruce who have raised $1.8 million in support of local students who are pursuing post-secondary studies, skills upgrades, workplace training, apprenticeships or trades education. On March 23rd I had the pleasure of joining the Chair of the Foundation's Board of Directors, Maureen Solecki, along with Executive Director Stuart Reed, Fund holders Lyle Love and Kim West and Ambassador Stein Furness at Georgian College in Olonsound where they announced the $1.8 million education fund to students competing at the Interior Youth Apprenticeship Program's regional skills competition. The very people who will be able to benefit from this community effort. Community Foundation Gray Bruce has a strong record in supporting a variety of non-profit organizations in our local community since 1994. I think part of their success lies in the fact that Bruce and Gray are very caring communities where people do step up and help out in any way they can. I'm humbled and honored to advise my siblings and I, set up the Gene Walker and Marjorie Moll scholarship fund which now provides bursaries to students studying community health care or nursing. And my friend, Colleague and MPP, MP Soray from Bruce Gray Olonsound Larry Miller did the same when he and his wife set up the Larry and Darlene Miller Agricultural Bursary Fund to support students in agriculture and agri-food studies. All of these funds, scholarships, bursaries and awards are searchable on the Foundation's website at www.payforschoolgraybruce.com. I invite all members to join me in congratulating the Community Foundation Gray Bruce team on reaching the significant fund goal and expressing our gratitude to all caring individuals and families who stepped up to contribute funds to support local students in their chosen education pathway. I wish the Community Foundation Gray Bruce continued support in all of their pursuits. Thank you Mr. Speaker. Thank all members for their statements. It is therefore now time for our reports by committees. The member from Northumberland, Quinn-