Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I, too, would like to congratulate you on your new position with this House. I rise in the House today to speak about the great corporate citizens that we have in the Northwest Territories. Whether it is for community groups, sporting events, or individual pursuits, it is the corporate sponsors and supporters that, time and again, make so many things happen for so many of us. Mr. Speaker, many times, corporate citizens step up to the plate and often they do not get the full recognition that they deserve.

Just a few weeks back, the YK seniors' raffle had a book of tickets stolen from them. It was valued at $400. Without blinking an eye, Diavik stepped in and gave the Seniors' Society a cheque for $400. Diavik also gets full marks for stepping in and helping the City of Yellowknife complete the second half of the Multiplex project. I would like to publicly thank Diavik for that kind of commitment to our community.

Big events in Yellowknife and the rest of the Northwest Territories do not happen without corporate support. DeBeers has recently come to the calling of Folk on the Rocks with a multi-year sponsorship deal. The tournament coordinator for the Canadian North Balsillie Cup Tournament, which was recently held in Yellowknife, wrote MLAs a letter at the beginning of the month expressing how pleased he and the organizing committee were with the level of corporate support they received and the dedication of the volunteers. They identified Canadian North as playing a key role in the success of that tournament. In addition, his letter stated that the tournament had received donations of money and promotional items from over 40 local businesses.

I am also in receipt of a letter from the Yellowknife Ski Club who also commends the corporate support of Canadian North, Blachford Lake Lodge, and Air Tindi for helping them put together their annual high performance and biathlon raffle.

There are many other valued corporate citizens out there. As I mentioned, they often do not get the recognition they deserve. What brought this statement together for me was when a young constituent of mine, Mr. Kevin St. Germaine, was accepting his award for youth male athlete

of the year last Saturday evening at the Sport North awards banquet, and he singled out Mr. Rick Bolivar from Ryfan Electric as being the reason he was financially able to compete and have his best season ever. It is the strong corporate citizens of this community and territory that make events happen and allow individuals to pursue their goals and dreams.

Mr. Speaker, I cannot mention all of the great corporate citizens we have here today, but I just want to say your efforts do not go unnoticed. Thank you.

---Applause