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It was the “honour of a lifetime” to serve as the representative of the Crown in Canada for the past five years, outgoing Gov. Gen. Mary Simon said in a speech to parliamentarians on Wednesday.
In that short time span, Queen Elizabeth, whom Simon represented, died and Charles was crowned King.
Simon said she was proud to help organize the first audience between King Charles and national Indigenous leaders.
She was sworn in on July 2021 as Canada’s first Indigenous Governor General.
In her time as the Crown’s representative, Canada endured the upheaval of a pandemic, saw a new prime minister come to power and witnessed U.S. President Donald Trump’s return to the White House.
As Mary Simon’s time as Governor General comes to an end, Prime Minister Mark Carney said her legacy will ‘live on,’ particularly in her efforts to protect Indigenous Peoples in Canada. ‘Mary Simon’s service will not end with the last boxes leaving Rideau Hall,’ but with the long and deep legacy she is leaving behind, he said.
“Throughout these changes, I have remained confident in the strength of our democracy, our institutions and our sovereignty,” Simon told a crowd at the Sir John A. Macdonald building, across the street from Parliament Hill in the capital.
“I have sought to be a bridge-builder for all Canadians. That is the true spirit of reconciliation.”
She said that during her term, she worked to “foster meaningful connections between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples,” including the King, Pope Francis and Pope Leo.
Simon made the comments at a send-off ceremony just a few days before her term officially concludes.
Prime Minister Mark Carney announced in May that retired Supreme Court justice Louise Arbour will succeed Simon. Arbour will take on the post in a formal ceremony on June 8.
Carney said Wednesday that Canada is grateful for Simon’s service and thanked her for her efforts to further Indigenous reconciliation.
The prime minister said Canada is walking the “long road of reconciliation” and forging a renewed relationship between Indigenous Peoples and the Crown, thanks in part to Simon’s efforts.
Carney praised the Arctic Council that Simon established long before entering office. Pointing to her new mental health charity, Carney said Simon’s service will “not end with the last boxes leaving Rideau Hall.”
Simon recently unveiled a new project to fund mental health services in Northern and Indigenous communities called “Ajuinnata,” an Inuktitut word which means “never give up.”
The federal government is funding the project with an initial $5 million outlay, along with a pledge to match up to $10 million raised by the Rideau Hall Foundation.
