Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today I would like to speak about one of the most important assets in our communities and in our lives -- our elders. Mr. Speaker, our small communities depend on our elders for knowledge, for support and also for being there for the family as a whole.

Mr. Speaker, the community of Fort McPherson has been requesting for some time that we consider a long-term facility in Fort McPherson to ensure that our elders can live out their lives in the community of Fort McPherson without having to leave the community and be put in long-term facilities either in Aklavik or Inuvik.

Mr. Speaker, this summer at the Gwich'in assembly, the community passed a motion at the assembly directing this government to consider the establishment of a long-term facility in Fort McPherson. Also, Mr. Speaker, there was a similar motion passed at the community assembly in Fort McPherson to work with this government to establish such a facility in the community of Fort McPherson to keep our elders in our communities.

Mr. Speaker, the community feels that they have the resources, they have the personnel and they have the ability to take on such a facility and to manage the facility within the community as a whole. Mr. Speaker, such a facility will ensure that the community members and the community do not have to continue seeing our elders leave our communities, and in most cases, not live out the rest of the time that they have with us in our home communities.

Mr. Speaker, as a Member of this Legislative Assembly, I have been lobbying the Minister of the Housing Corporation and the Minister of Health and Social Services, to see what this government can do to carry out this important initiative. Yet to date, Mr. Speaker, I have not seen any correspondence or any information in regard to what the status of this correspondence to the Ministers are, so Mr. Speaker, at the appropriate time, I will be asking the Ministers questions on this matter. Thank you.

-- Applause