Rideau Hall, Thursday, October 13, 2011
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Good morning and welcome to Rideau Hall.
Duty.
Honour.
Responsibility.
You have aspired to all of these, and they have led you to this moment. I am honoured today, as commander-in-chief, to present you with scrolls, promoting you to the general officer ranks.
One of the very first things I requested when I first became governor general was to visit the Canadian Forces’ members serving in Afghanistan as soon as possible. I am proud to be commander-in-chief, and I felt it was my responsibility to learn as much as possible from you and to experience life with the troops.
I wanted to have a first-hand look at the difference we make in countries around the world. I was impressed by what I saw, but I was even more impressed by what I heard. Everywhere I went in Afghanistan—and for that matter, wherever I have gone in Canada—I heard praise for the members of our Canadian Forces. In fact, I have been privileged during the first year of my mandate to have had numerous opportunities to meet with and celebrate the accomplishments of the members of the Canadian Forces.
And wherever I went, I was told of your devotion to duty, your professionalism in the field, your compassion towards those you have sworn to protect, your bravery in the face of overwhelming odds, and your leadership in the local and international communities.
Indeed, I witnessed this first-hand during my visit to Nunavut. There, I saw members of the Canadian Forces perform training exercises as part of Operation NANOOK. The skill, precision and leadership necessary to successfully complete these exercises were evident.
Later that day, my wife, Sharon, and I were startled to realize that a plane had crashed not far from where we were staying. But we have never been prouder of our Canadian Forces, who sprung into action to save who they could. Their actions on that day were a testament to leadership and to the dedication every soldier has to their country.
As we look to the future of the Canadian Forces, it will take creative and innovative leadership to build on the strength of our soldiers, but I know that those here have the essential skills to succeed.
So this torch passes now to you, because these scrolls represent not only your promotion, but also the duty that you have to improve operations and to maintain the Canadian Forces’ efficiency.
As a general officer, at either the brigadier-general or commodore level, your leadership will be more widely felt and your decisions closely scrutinized. But there is a reason why you have been entrusted with this honour. You are respected by those under your command; you have proven yourselves time and again capable of making difficult decisions; and you have shown your fortitude consistently.
Achieving this rank is a testament to your commitment to the Canadian Forces and to Canada.
But as much as we are here to honour your accomplishments and the fine careers that have brought you here, I want to also speak about your families, who have stood beside you through it all.
My wife, Sharon, and I have been privileged to spend time with military families across the country. We have been amazed at their resilience, their adaptability and their strength. Military families are an especially close-knit community, and we are honoured that they have accepted us into their lives.
Family is so important, a fact that is not lost on those of you here. We applaud military families, here and across Canada, who are the champions of our military pride.
Indeed, across the country, Canadians celebrate the unique work done by members of the Canadian Forces around the world, and I join with them in congratulating you on a distinguished career to date and the next step in your journey through the ranks.
Thank you.
