REGINA – A focus on building bridges and connecting with people has been among the priorities for Governor General Mary Simon during her official visit to Saskatchewan this week.
Simon spoke to SASKTODAY.ca on Tuesday about her three day tour of Saskatchewan. During that conversation, Her Excellency outlined what her objectives were on this first official visit to the province.
“I guess the main point I would make first is that when I do my visits to provinces, I really find it important to connect with Canadians across the country. And I feel that is an essential part of my job, and also meeting Canadians in their communities really allows me to get a better and real understanding of the issues they are facing.”
Governor General Simon touched down in Saskatchewan on Monday, starting her tour at the Legislative Building in Regina where she inspected a full RCMP guard of honour.
She was greeted by Premier Scott Moe and met with him inside the Premier’s Office in the Legislature. Moe would later tell reporters that a main focus of their discussion was on the issue of mental health and addictions.
Soon after, Simon met Lt. Governor Russ Mirasty at Government House and later visited the First Nations University of Canada. That evening, both Lt. Governor Russ Mirasty and Donna Mirasty hosted Governor General Simon and her husband His Excellency Whit Fraser at a reception at Government House, with over 200 invited guests attending.
On Tuesday morning, Simon and her entourage made their way to the Regina Open Door Society in downtown Regina. There, the Governor General toured the Regina Open Door Society Mural located on the building’s outside wall, alongside the lead artists who painted the mural.
She then toured the building, and was the guest at an English language class attended by several new Canadians, who were there to learn not only language skills but also Canadian customs and culture. Simon spoke to the class and revealed that, like those students, she was also in the process of learning one of Canada’s official languages — in this case, French.
For those involved with the Regina Open Door Society, an organization whose mission is to help immigrants and refugees who are coming to Regina, it was a memorable and exciting day.
“I think it is the experience of a lifetime not only for the organization, but most importantly, for our learners,” said Ricardo Arisnabarreta, Manager of Language Services at the Regina Open Door Society.
“She got to engage with our learners, and our learners got to experience a significant moment with the language. They are trying to learn, be able to use the language. They are learning in the country that is welcoming them.”
“I think it was a lifetime experience for both our students and the staff,” said Tatiana Zotova, Director of Language, Employment and Daycare Services at the Regina Open Door Society. “It was an amazing opportunity to put a human face to the title… I think our clients, as newcomers to Canada, it’s very important for them to participate in Canadian life, to understand the levels of the government, and here to have this firsthand experience was really amazing. And it was, I think, very relatable, because the Governor General tried to share her experience in learning a second language…. and the clients had a wonderful opportunity to share their personal experiences and their stories in language of how they came to Canada and what they’re trying to do here.”
From there, Simon headed north towards Saskatoon. First up was a rural-focused round-table discussion with SaskAgMatters for farmers and ranchers on the issue of mental health.
Several more events are planned for Simon in Saskatoon, including a visit to Wanuskewin on Wednesday.
A key focus for the Governor General on this visit is reconciliation, with meetings with Indigenous and Métis leaders during the week.
“It’s really important, I think, that I play a role in creating bridges between different realities of Canadians,” said Simon. “In particular on this visit, I’ve been able to have meetings with the leaders of First Nations, and also the Metis Nation of Saskatchewan, and connecting the Indigenous community with the non-Indigenous community is a very important part of my role because when we talk about reconciliation, what really matters is making those connections and learning about how Saskatchewan people are doing, as well as the issues that they’re concerned about. So for me, this has been a really interesting and important trip for me.”
What has really impressed her during her visit, the Governor General said, was “really about how connected people are in the province of Saskatchewan, particularly with relation to Indigenous peoples and other people within the province. I find that as I talk to different people and different organizations and groups, there’s a lot of discussion about how people are working together, how they are partnering more and more, and that there’s a change taking place in the province, and that they’re very committed to that relationship – building the relationship. That has really impressed me a great deal. I know there’s always big challenges ahead of all of these people that I have met, but the forward-looking approach that I’ve heard is something that I really identified with because we all have lived in the history of the country — residential schools — and people are still healing from that trauma. But at the same time we have to look to the future to see how we have more equality within our own provinces and territories, and that it matters that there is that connection and it matters that we learn about the stories of Indigenous people and to learn from them, and also Indigenous people are also learning about other people that have made Canada their home. So it’s a process and it’s a lifelong experience.”
When asked why this visit is significant in her own mind, Governor General Simon said this:
“It’s significant in more than one way. First of all, it’s my first official visit to the province as Governor General. I have been here in the last couple of years for other things… I have never had my official visit up to this point, so to have the official visit is something I’ve committed to in all of the provinces. I find that a lot of the people that I’ve met have a very positive outlook in terms of what’s happening in Saskatchewan, even though they talk to me about the challenges — like today, related to climate change, and the drought and the floods that they get, and how that affects the families and how it affects people’s mental health, and all those issues are very real in everyone’s lives, in all our lives. But to have an approach that’s looking for answers, to make Canada the very best place, the best country in the world is something that I think we all want to aspire to… I was really pleased to see this here in Saskatchewan.”