Speaking Notes for

Albina Guarnieri, P.C., M.P.

For the announcement of the Cenotaph/Monument Restoration Program

Well, I couldn't pass up the invitation to come to Woodstock today. The last time I was asked to go to Woodstock was in the sixties, but I know that this will be an equally memorable occasion.

Monuments are built to be a message to the future and a memory of the past. We want that message to be one of respect and honour for the memory of a noble generation of Canadians. We want that message to endure the tide of time and stand out from the ordinary, the way our Veterans stepped out of ordinary times to do the extraordinary for Canada.

So, in this Year of the Veteran, we have set out to restore our monuments to their former glory. We recently launched the restoration of our most spectacular tribute at Vimy Ridge.

If you have seen it, you know that it is a sight that changes your view of Canada and elevates the spirit of every Canadian.

When I was there recently, we visited a restaurant in Arras, a town nearby. Six stories under its basement, we were shown the most striking reminder of the Veterans whose memory we struggle to keep alive.

In what was once an underground tunnel, connecting trenches, there was a simple mark carved in the stone: "Toronto". Clearly men of the time wanted someone to know they had been there, sixty feet under the earth, thousands of miles from home.

Across Canada, there are memories of these Veterans and all their colleagues. And this year, we have partnered with community groups and local organizations to launch the Canadian Cenotaph and Monument Restoration Program.

It is a campaign of care that will be shared by the Federal government and the communities that built these cenotaphs.

The Government of Canada has dedicated $2 million this year and next and $1.5 million each subsequent year to an effort that is intended to help our military heritage endure the years. My department will contribute as much as 50 per cent of conservation costs, up to a maximum of $25,000 per cenotaph or monument.

All across the country, in movie theatres airports and street corners, Canadians are reminded that this is Canada's Year of the Veteran.

This is the year that we excavate our history to rediscover the golden moments that were lived by a few, but have brought a golden era to millions of Canadians. Our veterans know that history, know where the treasures of time are to be found and this year, we have asked every veteran to leave their mark on a new generation.

The year of the Veteran was declared because the years ahead would too soon be years without Veterans, years without Veterans of the Second World War.

Years when history would be told by books and film but not by those who lived it. Years when only the headlines, only the most widely known stories would be known at all.

Communities from coast to coast to coast have joined together to bring the Year of the Veteran to life.

In fact, just four months into the Year of the Veteran, 81 per cent of Canadians polled, more than four out of every five - were aware of the Year of the Veteran or the 60th anniversary of the end of the Second World War in Europe.

In the final months, we will continue to spotlight great Canadians with the Aboriginal Spiritual Journey in October and our Veterans' Week in November.

And right here in Woodstock, I want to thank one great Canadian of our generation. The person who led the initiative to create the New Cenotaph and Monument Restoration Program, your Member of Parliament, Andy Savoy.

It was Andy who introduced a Private Members motion in the House of Commons calling for this program, and with a little help from Prime Minister Paul Martin and finance minister Ralph Goodale and Veterans Affairs, an important program for Veterans is a reality. So thank you Andy and thank you all for helping to make the Year of the Veteran, a year we make all of Canada a little more worthy of the sacrifice of all our Veterans.

Thank you. Merci.