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Thank you, Reverend Curtis.
I knew John my whole life, in fact, John and I go back to even before I was born!
As John used to tell it, he got a last minute call from my father one Christmas Eve.
Dad told him that Mom, who was very pregnant with me, would like to go to midnight mass with John and Geills.
John was caught off guard, but he managed to call Father O’Rourke at Mount Carmel Church to make arrangements.
They made mass, went back to the Turners’ house for a nightcap, and eventually went home where my mother promptly went into labour.
I was born the next morning.
John used to impress on every young person he engaged with that we all have the ability to do great things in this world, if we make the choice to do so.
I think that’s why he was so fond of paraphrasing Saint Augustin, saying “to him or her to whom God has given talent, let him or her give some back.”
John always found a way to give back to this country, whether serving as a Member of Parliament in three different provinces, or in Cabinet.
While John was a pillar of the House of Commons, always fighting for a more just world, he remained profoundly human, he was approachable, and he always remembered your birthday.
John shared a vision with my dad, and that vision led him to transform and modernize the Criminal Code.
John paved the way for legal aid in Canada, to ensure that everyone could defend their rights.
But what stood out to me the most was that he understood the importance of encouraging young people to get involved in our democracy, and that he devoted a great deal of his time to protecting our environment.
He often said he felt “more Canadian than ever” whenever he went off to explore our waterways and our magnificent forests.
John was a great unifier, always seeking to give back to this great country of ours.
John’s 90th birthday celebration on the Hill last year brought together people from across the political spectrum.
That speaks volumes about the type of man he was.
John always noted that “democracy doesn’t happen by accident.”
He knew we could rise to any challenge, and meet any moment – if we believed in one another and stood together.
Today, more than ever, we need more people like John.
His legacy calls on us to not wait for change to happen, but to stand up and build a better country for everyone.
John, you were a great Canadian.
Your vision of a stronger and fairer Canada lives on.
Rest in peace.