Colleagues, today, I would like to recognize an individual that received the Life Member Award (formerly called the Honorary Life Member) from the NWTRPA this past October. This award is not something given out annual but recognizes a member who has made an outstanding contribution to the recreation and parks field, who has significantly served the NWT Recreation and Parks, and is nearing or has reached the end of their career in the recreation and parks field. This past October, it was given to Colin MacPherson.

I have had the pleasure of working with him when he took the recreation coordinator position in Fort Liard. I can tell you he made a huge impact on the community and the youth. To this day, people in the community speak highly of him and the things he did for the community. One of the biggest highlights, besides the swimming pool, was the speed skating program. He worked hard to get youth engaged and to try out for the Arctic Winter Games. After leaving Fort Liard, he moved to the Yukon, then to Inuvik, and then to Norman Wells where he became the regional recreation development officer for the Sahtu region. Years later, he moved to Fort Smith and then to Yellowknife, where he is the manager of community services for the sport and rec division.

During his time in Norman Wells and Fort Smith, I got to work with him on various projects such as northern youth aboard program, the youth ambassadors program which takes youth to the Canada Winter and Summer Games, Arctic Winter Games, Pan Am Games, and Winter Olympic Games and on the development of sport and recreation policies that we are still using today.

Colin was our guys when it came to aquatics, whether it was facility side or the staffing part of the program, he was the one you'd call. He could come into a community, hear the problem, and provide great advice on how to fix it or where to get the necessary part. He was an asset for the communities that he worked with daily and a strong component of the team we worked with. I have included his nomination form at the end of my statement and ask that it be deemed as read and printed in the Hansard.

In closing, there are many stories that I want to share with you but being reflective of the time, I would like to congratulate him on receiving this award.

Members' statements. Returns to oral questions. Recognition of visitors in the gallery.