Mr. Speaker, I had the great pleasure three weeks ago at the Legislative Assembly to meet a wonderful young lady, Miss Kendra Qilluniq. Kendra is the winner of the Queen's Jubilee Book Award. She was chosen by random draw of all entries to present the book "Voices of Our Youth" to Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II, two weeks ago in Ottawa.
This book was a compilation of stories created by the young people of the Northwest Territories to celebrate the Queen's Jubilee Year. The children were encouraged, as a literacy project, to write a story that they would like to tell Her Royal Majesty. My honourable colleague, Mr. Steen, has already shared several of these stories with Members of this House.
Each principal of the participating schools was asked to nominate a contributing student who would be an excellent ambassador to present Queen Elizabeth with her copy of the book. Our winner was Kendra Qilluniq, a grade 5 student from Weledeh Catholic School in Yellowknife.
According to her principal, Ms. Merril Dean, Kendra is a self-confident mature student who has shown leadership skills throughout her six years at Weledeh. She is always one of the first to volunteer to do extra tasks and activities that contribute to the well-being of the class. Kendra, according to her principal, has a strong sense of presentation, excellent speaking skills and works hard at playing fair.
All these qualities were demonstrated during Kendra's stay in Ottawa. She waited patiently outdoors during an incredible rainstorm in order to present Queen Elizabeth with her copy of "Voices of Our Youth". I would like to take this opportunity to thank Kendra, on behalf of all students and residents of the Northwest Territories, for being such an excellent ambassador. She represented us well.
I would recommend that if you have not yet been able to read a copy of this very entertaining book, go to your local library or school library and take an opportunity to do so. Not only is it a
great window into the minds of our youth of today, but it is also a very good read.
Mr. Speaker, I would like today to thank not only Kendra for her part in this project but each and every student who took the time and energy to present a story for Queen Elizabeth. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.