Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This past weekend, CBC television aired a documentary titled "Olympians". The athletes that were presented were Shirley and Sharon Firth. Shirley and Sharon are twin sisters from the Mackenzie Delta who are indeed unique Canadians. I felt that it was time to also pay honour to them in this House.
Shirley and Sharon are products of the Territorial Experimental Ski Training Program, more commonly known as the TEST program. This program began in 1965 under Father Monchet and coach Bjoyer Pettersen. The program produced many national level and several Olympic level athletes. The program also placed Inuvik on the map of the cross country skiing world.
Mr. Speaker, Sharon and Shirley are unique in that they have done what no other Canadian woman has done. In fact, they have done what no other Canadian aboriginal person has done. The Firth twins are the only Canadian women to have represented Canada at four Olympic Games. Together, the ladies have 48 Canadian championships.
These, Mr. Speaker, are only the triumphs that are recorded on paper. There are other achievements that can be attributed to these women that are not recorded on paper.
Mr. Speaker, the Firth sisters have given hope to many aboriginal youth in small communities throughout the Northwest Territories and Canada. They have served as role models to all Canadians. Sharon and Shirley have represented the Northwest Territories and Canada all over the world and are the subject of television documentaries, such as the one aired this weekend. Throughout all of this, they remain true and proud of their Loucheux roots and heritage, and their origins in the Mackenzie Delta.
Mr. Speaker; as an aboriginal person from the Mackenzie Delta, I wish to thank Shirley and Sharon Firth for the trail they have blazed for the people of the Northwest Territories and Canada. I want to thank them for being an example of what Northwest Territories youth can aspire to at the national and international scene. Lastly, I want to acknowledge them in...