 It is now time for members. David is the member from Leeds-Grenville. Speaker, I rise to celebrate another remarkable example of the generosity and community spirit that makes Leeds-Grenville a great place to live. Last weekend, our community dug deep to help the 30-hour telethon for palliative care services at the Brockville General Hospital raise the bar to heights not seen in its 32 years. Led by event chair Bruce Wiley, his incredible team of volunteers and some amazing entertainers who gave their time and their talent, the telethon raised a record $250,582. Thank you. Bruce is a long time host and chair of the event and there wasn't a dry eye in the house when he announced he's passing the torch as event chair. It was truly a case of going out on top. And it's great Bruce will continue to host the telethon which has raised nearly $3 million over three decades. These funds ensure BGH's cherished palliative care program is there to provide compassionate end-of-life care for patients and family support. Every penny of its $575,000 annual budget is raised locally because the health ministry provides no funding. I want to echo Bruce Wiley's passionate plea at the end of this year's telethon for that to change. He said and I quote, people are going to support this telethon for as long as we need to support it. Until we get a government that's willing to put some money into things that count. This is one of those things that count. I wholeheartedly agree palliative care does count and I hope that Minister Hoskins is listening to those words. Thank you, Speaker. Thank you. Thank you. Member Samuelson, Member from Hamilton Mountain. Thank you, Speaker. I chose my statement today with a left one in mind. One in ten Canadians have kidney disease or failure and March is kidney month with this Thursday, March 12th, being World Kidney Day. Often there are no symptoms of kidney disease until it is quite advanced and most kidney function is already lost. But early detection can be the difference between life and death. Last year the kidney foundation of Canada introduced an online risk assessment tool, a simple quiz that takes only a few minutes, ten short questions that helps people decide if they should be speaking to their doctor about kidney disease. And let's not forget about just how important it is to become an Oregon donor. Life is precious and as we know many have been saved because they were able to receive an organ donated by someone who had recently passed. I certainly, in the case of kidneys, live donors must match and are sometimes quite rare. For all Oregon donation it is important that many people as possible register to be a donor. Again, you can do it online. It only takes a couple minutes at beadoner.ca. You can specify all the organs you want to donate, not just kidneys. One small step can save a life. In fact, it can save up to eight lives. At a time of tragic loss, that is quite a legacy to leave behind. So be a donor. Thank you, Speaker. Thank you. Member statements. The member for Kingston and the Islands. Mr. Speaker, I rise to make a few observations about one of the many excellent youth programs that are offered here in the legislature. That is the Legislative Assembly's model parliament. Last week I met up with two students attending this year's three day event. Nick Barnes and Sebastian Scott from Kingston Collegiate Vocational Institute from my riding of Kingston and the Islands. This unique educational experience brings students from each riding to learn about the history of this institution and about legislative processes through workshops and presentations. I want to commend this program for encouraging our youth to participate in civic and community affairs and in political decision making and governance. If we are saddened by the lack of democratic engagement of our youth, and we should be, then the model parliament is one remedy. I'd like to suggest another, Mr. Speaker. This house is a living repository of history, a museum of sorts. If I may be so bold, I'd like to suggest that our main exhibit, Question Period, might be retrofitted to bring up to modern standards. The harsh reality is that people of all ages are turned off by the antics by the lack of decorum and by the lack of substantive discussion of the affairs that affect their lives. I have a friend in his 80s who until last week's charades watched every morning. He's no longer interested. When I work in a constituency office for seven years, I heard similar comments all the time. In closing, Mr. Speaker, we must not forget that threats to democracy come from within and from without. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and then we're from Elgar Middlesex, London. Thank you, Speaker. I'd like to say congratulations to a constituent of mine, Tom Bradish, who was inducted into the Middlesex Agricultural Hall of Fame last week. Tom was born in London and raised in the edge of a village of Glenworth on his family farm. He attended Weebel Collegiate in London. Tom's parents, William and Jesse Bradish, had a dairy farm where William also bought and sold many Holsteins. Tom went to Guelph to pursue his diploma in agriculture from 1965 to 1967 and returned home to work on the farm. Tom and his wife, Helen, have two daughters, Sherry and Kelly, and a son, John. Since 1961, Tom has been involved in growing vegetables for processing, including peas, green beans, squash, and sweet corn. Along with the Ferguson's and the Cuddies, he is one of the founding partners of Strathroy Foods, which later became Carrier Foods, which was then purchased by Bondual Foods in 2007, which is a family-run business from France. Now farming with his son, John, Tom's company, Glenard Vest, harvested approximately 20,000 acres of vegetables for Bondual's Ingersoll and Strathroy's locations. The harvesting keeps 25 to 35 employees busy from mid-June to late October and stretches from Chatham to Tillsenburg to north of Elderton all the way down to Port Stanley. Tom's agriculture involvement includes hosting the 1985 International Plowing Match, co-chairing the 2002 International Plowing Match Tented City held in Middlesex, and in 2003 was the vice president of the world plowing match at the experimental research farm in Guelph. We are proud of Tom having our riding. Agriculture is stronger because of people like Tom Bradish, and we wish Tom all the best as he enjoys his induction into the Hall of Fame. Thank you. Member Stainless, Member from Moscow. Thank you, Speaker. This weekend, I celebrated International Women's Day and attended the Uniform National Skilled Trades Council, and I have decided to talk about both events, to talk about women and the workforce. Speaker, we talk a lot about strengthening our province and our communities, but it's our workers and tradespeople who are the ones actually doing the physical work. They are literally building, shaping, fixing, crafting, and strengthening our communities and our economy in a real way. Jobs in the trades and the manufacturing sector are good, solid, stable, well-paid jobs that allow people to contribute to their local economy, allow them to make plans and live with some predictability. We should be prioritizing these kinds of jobs, funding school programs and promoting apprenticeships for our kids and for our girls. It's one of the many reasons I'm proud to be a new Democrat. New Democrats stand up for equity in the workplace, fight to tear through the glass ceiling, and demand equal pay for equal work. At the Skilled Trades Council, delegates discuss the importance of encouraging women leaders and involvement in the skilled trades. Yes, absolutely. Our girls need to see themselves reflected in the trades, and they never will if they can't get into them. We must promote career paths and apprenticeships that afford young workers the opportunity to earn while they learn. If government really wanted to build a solid economy, they would invest in our kids, our girls, and our workers. New Democrats will continue to stand up to unfair policies and to stand up for workers, women, and communities across Ontario. Thank you, Speaker. Further member Stem, it's the member from Etobicoke Lakeshore. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Canadian Tibetan Cultural Centre was established in my writing of Etobicoke Lakeshore on October 17, 2007. And on Saturday, February 21, the Centre celebrated Tibetan Lunar New Year with their special guest, Dr. Andrew Bennett, Ambassador for Religious Freedom from the Office of Religious Freedom. I'm pleased to say that over the years I've had the honour and privilege of being a guest on many special occasions at the Canadian Tibetan Cultural Centre. Most recently, to mark the 25th anniversary of the Dalai Lama's being presented with the Nobel Peace Prize. That event, I was also very happy to be on hand to help cut the ribbon on the Centre's new kitchen, which was made possible thanks to a $150,000 grant from the Ontario Trillium Foundation last year. And this investment from the Ontario Trillium Fund and subsequent kitchen renovation will support the Canadian Tibetan Cultural Centre's role of providing social, cultural and recreational programmes for participants of all ages. I'm very proud to have the first and only Tibetan Cultural Centre in Canada right in my writing of Etobicoke Lakeshore. And I also want to make mention of the 56th National Tibet Uprising Day taking place tomorrow on March 10. Mr. Speaker, I know that this day is very important to my guests and to all Tibetans across Etobicoke Lakeshore in Canada. To my guest today, and Serene Tsomo, President of the Canadian Tibetan Cultural Centre, all of its members in all Canadian Tibetans in Etobicoke Lakeshore, Lo Sarpeh Dalek. I wish you prosperity and goodwill. Thank you. Welcome. For the member statements, the member from Yark Simkel. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker, and I'm pleased to speak today on the day of Commonwealth Day. And I was pleased to join the Speaker and others from the various political parties to join together recognising Commonwealth Day. And the Commonwealth Nations, while autonomous, share a rich history that has given them common values, economic, political and social strength. And this is an especially historic year as we mark the 800th anniversary of the signing of Magna Carta, a revolutionary document that is considered to be the foundation for our system of common law. And it certainly was a precursor to the Canadian political system of constitutional monarchy. I'm looking forward to the second reading of my bill, the Magna Carta Day Act. If passed June 15th, each year would be proclaimed as Magna Carta Day here in Ontario. I hope that future generations will remember and celebrate our history and appreciate the origins of the freedoms that we enjoy here in our daily life in Canada as part of the Commonwealth. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you. Member Stevens, the member from Mississauga Streetsville. Well, thank you very much, Speaker. As travel season approaches, it's time for Ontario families to do an identity check. If you're planning to travel to the United States, you're going to need an updated passport. If yours has expired or has less than six months left until it expires, it's time to renew that passport. Whether you travel in the United States or within Canada, outside Ontario, ensure that you have supplementary health coverage for everyone traveling. Seniors need a special identity check, and their families have an important role to play. Ensure every senior has an updated Ontario health card. Within a year, the old obsolete red and white card will have been phased out. Too many seniors do not have any up-to-date government-issued ID. An expired Ontario driver's license is not valid identification. Seniors who no longer drive should have an Ontario photo card. Their families need to assist by ensuring that seniors have valid identification cards. As well, check each seniors and each family member's birth certificate. An old certificate of baptism needs to be upgraded to an official Ontario birth certificate if you were born here. You can do this online and or by mail. As our precious Ontario warm weather approaches, Speaker, it's time for all Ontarians to do an identity check. Thank you very much. Thank you. Member Stamis, the member from Davenport. So thank you, Mr. Speaker. As I'm sure many of you in the House know, yesterday, Sunday, March 8th marked the celebration of International Women's Day. Since 1914, this important occasion has been celebrating women around the world. This year's theme set by the UN was empowering women, empowering humanity. To pay tribute to this significant occasion, I have with us in the Member's Gallery nine fantastic Portuguese-Canadian women who have made significant contributions to our society and across a variety of sectors. Organized by Ana Eshoa and in light of the Pan-Para Pan American Games, a torch relay was initiated to commemorate International Women's Day. This torch was passed to 10 women who have made significant contributions to the Portuguese-Canadian community and to our province. The relay importantly highlights the contributions of women of Luzo-Canadian origin across diverse sectors in our province. Mr. Speaker, all of these strong women deserve praise in this legislature this afternoon, and these women are as follows. Representing the financial sector is relay organizer Ana Eshoa. From education is Ana Paula Ribeiro. Angela Menchado was here for the charitable sector. Representing cultural promotion is Rosa de Souza. Cateca de Mujo was representing the youth and volunteering in the non-for-profit sector. Representing our community as a pioneer, Lucilia Simas. Susa Cunha for Community Associations and Public Service Paula Medeiros. Lisa Fada representing Armed Forces. And lastly, the torch arrived here at Queen's Park this morning to my office, as I am the first Portuguese-Canadian woman elected in government to this legislature. Thank you. Mr. Speaker, I'm very happy to host these incredible women here at Queen's Park, and I'd like to thank Ana Eshoa once again for this great initiative. Ladies, stand up. She made them stand up faster than I stood up. Thank all members for their statements.