Canada Day
Background

On June 20, 1868, a proclamation signed by the Governor General, Lord Monck, called upon all Her Majesty's loving subjects throughout Canada to join in the celebration of the anniversary of the formation of the union of the British North America provinces in a federation under the name of Canada on July 1st.

The July 1 holiday was established by statute in 1879, under the name Dominion Day.

There is no record of organized ceremonies after this first anniversary, except for the 50th anniversary of Confederation in 1917, at which time the new Centre Block of the Parliament Buildings, under construction, was dedicated as a memorial to the Fathers of Confederation and to the valour of Canadians fighting in the First World War in Europe.

The next celebration was held in 1927 to mark the Diamond Jubilee of Confederation. It was highlighted by the laying of the cornerstone by the Governor General of the Confederation Building on Wellington Street and the inauguration of the Carillon in the Peace Tower.

Since 1958, the government has arranged for an annual observance of Canada's national day with the Secretary of State of Canada in charge of the coordination. The format provided for a Trooping the Colours ceremony on the lawn of Parliament Hill in the afternoon, a sunset ceremony in the evening followed by a mass band concert and fireworks display.

Another highlight was Canada's Centennial in 1967 when Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II attended the celebrations with Parliament Hill again being the backdrop for a large scale official ceremony.

The format changed in 1968 with the addition of multicultural and professional concerts held on Parliament Hill including a nationally televised show. Up until 1975, the focus of the celebrations, under the name "Festival Canada", was held in the National Capital Region during the whole month of July and involved numerous cultural, artistic and sport activities, as well as municipalities and voluntary organizations. The celebration was cancelled in 1976 but was reactivated in 1977.

A new formula was developed in 1980 whereby the National Committee (the federal government organization charged with planning Canada's Birthday celebrations) stressed and sponsored the development of local celebrations all across Canada. "Seed money" was distributed to promote popular and amateur activities organized by volunteer groups in hundreds of local communities. The same approach was also followed for the 1981 celebrations with the addition of fireworks displays in 15 major cities across the nation.

On October 27, 1982, July 1st which was known as "Dominion Day" became "Canada Day".

Since 1985, Canada Day Committees are established in each province and territory to plan, organize and coordinate the Canada Day celebrations locally. Grants are provided by the Department to those committees.

 

Bishop Alex Dias To Visit Toronto
Bishop Alex Dias	On Tuesday July 05th, 2005 a special holy mass will be celebrated at the Christ the King Roman Catholic church by Bishop Alex Dias for tsunami victims of Andaman & Nicobar islands. Time: 6.30 P.M Venue: 3495 Confederation Parkway, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. (corner of confederation and central pkwy.) This will be an opportunity for Toronto Goans to meet Bishop Alex Dias SFX, who hails from Calangute, Goa. He is the First Bishop of Port Blair Diocese, consecrated on January 20, 1985. He is also the First Bishop of the Society of Missionaries of St.Francis Xavier, Pilar, Goa.
Bishop Alex in the hall after mass Bishop Alex with Fr.Oliver Antao
The Bishop was also in London (UK) a few weeks ago. The following is an account of his visit, courtesy of Ciril Quadros. Subject: Bishop Alex Dias visits London From: "de Quadros, Ciril" <DeQuadrosC@halcrow.com> on behalf of Fr. Oliver Antao SFX, Asian Chaplain In the homily, Bishop Alex Dias reminded the congregation of God's love towards him and his flock. Although he had lost thousands of parishioners, some buildings, churches and chapels etc, amidst all the destruction God has a powerful message of love to convey to each and every one of us. The Diocese being only 20 years old is not in a position to handle the effects of the Tsunami and thus both spiritual and financial help is desperately needed. He thanked the well-wishers and friends of the Diocese for their contributions and prayerful support. The mass was organised by the Pilar Fathers in London and was concelebrated by Fr. Joseph Rodrigues sfx, Fr. James Pereira sfx, Fr. Oliver Antao sfx, Canon James Cronin ( Dean of the Cathedral) and Deacon Braz Menezes. After the mass the congregation met in the Amigo hall for the refreshments. After listening to Bishop Alex's first hand experiences of that dreadful morning, people were given an opportunity to ask questions pertaining to the aftermath of Tsunami disaster and the relief works. The various well-wishers and friends who had collected money to help with the relief work presented their cheques to Bishop Alex Dias. Bishop Dias accepted the cheques and thanked the well wishers for their support and appealed to them to keep the Diocese in their prayers. Above all it was a good day as people were very generous in helping the diocese and in return they got to know Bishop Dias in a little better.

Health system safe despite court ruling
BY DEBORAH GYAPONG
canadian Catholic News
OTTAWA
The recent Supreme court of Canada ruling on private health insurance in Quebec will not result in the destruction of Canada's publicly funded system,says the president and CEO of the Catholic Health Association of Canada(CHAC).
General Lewis said Canadians have a deeply rooted tradition of looking after each other that will guarantee the survival of medicare,despite fears among some observers that the decision may mean the unraveling of Canada's public health care system.
"We have a system of Canadians helping Canadians." Lewis said."That's been what has made Canada what it is today."
In an interview June 10,Lewis said he was not worried that the June 9 decision would lead to an American-style health care system.
"We dont want to become like the Americans."he said."We want a system that continues to allow every Canadian to have access to health care regardless of their financial condition."

Remembering Victims of Air India Flight - 20th anniversary of 'Canadian tragedy'
Thu, 23 Jun 2005
Excerpt
from:http://www.cbc.ca/story/world/national/2005/06/23/airindia050623.html
Flags in Canada are at half-staff to honour the 329 victims of Air India Flight 182 which blew up over the Atlantic Ocean 20 years ago today.
About 500 people, including friends and families of the victims of the Air India bombing, gathered for a sombre service to mark the 20th anniversary of the tragedy.
The memorial, which took place at Akahista, where a monument stands to honour the victims, began with a minute of silence at 8:12 a.m. On June 23, 1985 at 8:13 a.m., the flight vanished from the radar screens. All 329 people aboard were killed.
Prime Minister Paul Martin, Conservative Leader Stephen Harper, NDP Leader Jack Layton, Bloc Quebecois Leader Gilles Duceppe and B.C. Premier Gordon Campbell were among those who gathered for the sombre ceremony. Martin declared Thursday a national day of mourning in Canada.
"This act of evil defies comprehension," Martin said. "The flight may have been Air India, it may have taken place off the coast of Ireland, but in so many ways this is a Canadian tragedy," said Martin, who announced a permanent memorial will be built in Canada to honour the victims.
Earlier, family members laid flowers and pictures of loved ones below the names of the victims listed on a wall at the memorial site. The shadow of a large sundial in the middle of the monument is meant to touch a precise spot every June 23, at 8:13 a.m. Many family members have called for a probe into the tragedy following the acquittal of two men in connection with the bombing.

Invest in India, says ambassador to US physicians:-
Houston (Texas) | June 19, 2005 12:40:05 PM IST
Houston (Texas), June 19 : India's Ambassador to the United States Ronen Sen has urged physicians in the US to invest in India, especially in the growing health industry.
Addressing the 23rd annual convention of the American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin (AAPI) here, Sen said the potential for investing in the Indian healthcare industry was almost unlimited.
"In this changed environment, new avenues of cooperation are opening up. Please avail of the opportunities. And most important is your experience and expertise. We don't need handouts. What we need is investments.. and in the health sector... there are profitable investments," he said.
The highly influential AAPI has over 25,000 doctors as members.
"Today, several new opportunities exist. India has more FDA-approved (US Food & Drug Administration) pharma companies than any other country," said Sen, adding the introduction of the Patents Act had created new areas of investment and research, all of which would reduce the cost of drugs.
Indian Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss, during his US visit last week, had discussed numerous projects with Indian American physicians as well as with his counterpart in the US. India and the US had also signed agreements relating to health security areas such as disease surveillance, tracking the emergence and re-emergence of infectious diseases.

NAIROBI INSTITUTE CENTENARY See Special supplement in Goan Voice - UK http://www.goanvoice.org.uk/supplement/NICentenary.html

For photos see http://www.nicentenary.com/MainEvents/index.html