Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today I'm a bit early; however, I rise in this House today to congratulate the Class of 2022 for the two schools in Nahendeh riding. This year we see the Lidlii Kue Regional High School and Echo Dene School set to have their own celebrations for their graduates.

Mr. Speaker, these graduates completed school in the midst of a global pandemic. No doubt their life was disturbed. No doubt there was added stress. No doubt there was uncertainty.

Despite these challenges, or more accurately because of them, they are stronger. They are stronger students, having tested themselves. They will be a stronger job applicant as they have overcome the unexpected and persevered. They are stronger people that found ingenuity and resolution that they did not know they had.

Mr. Speaker, I'd like to congratulate them. Their special day will be fast approaching wherever they get to celebrate with their family and friends. That day is the one they have been waiting for since they entered kindergarten some 13 years ago. For some of them, it's waiting to get out of school and get on with their life. It brings to mind the old childhood rhyme - No more pencils. No more books. No more teacher's dirty looks.

They have taken the next steps on their adventure called life. For many others, high school graduation is just the next step in their education, whether they are heading to university, college, or looking to set up an apprenticeship, the daunting task of preparing for the career that is in front of them.

Mr. Speaker, I'd like to tell the grads as they return the caps and gowns they will be wearing during their special day and they take the tassels home, remember this: The diploma you receive today is your insurance policy paid in full by your hard work over the past 13 years. The value of this policy will depend on how much effort you put into your education and what you do with it as you go out in the world. All the best to them on their special day. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.