Thank you, Kenton.
Thank you today for the opportunity to have me speak to you here today. This is the last place I ever expected I'd be.
I'm an ex-offender who is trying to put his criminal past behind him, but the way our society is structured, and how far I've become unstructured from society, on its own is a long and trying endeavour. It's an absorbing road that one may never find a way out of, so people choose to give in. But I refuse to quit, because I know that with my family, my beliefs, and my goals that I've set forth, those things that I achieve will bring me happiness and a sense of self-worth.
I believe that by increasing the pardon waiting period to make it impossible for anyone with more than three indictable offences to apply for a pardon, many lives will be affected--as well as mine. If this new bill were to pass, it would close many doors for me and condemn me to live with my past indefinitely. I may never be able to achieve a job with respectable pay like the one at Turning Leaf, which I acquired through the help of the staff at Opportunities for Employment, who didn't discriminate against me and believed in me, believed that I could do it.
I volunteered at Turning Leaf. It is an organization that works with children with disabilities, and it was a rewarding experience. I'm passionate about this work, and my referrals from this organization will tell you that this work is a great fit for me and for my skills as well. Though they couldn't hire me because of my record, they hoped that after I received my pardon I would come back and work for them.
I'm in the middle of my pardon process and trying to get all the necessary documents. It may still take quite a while. But if this bill goes through, I will not be eligible for a pardon at all, and the field of work that I love may never be accessible to me. Many opportunities in my life will be impacted by this new change, and I'm pleading for you to consider this bill, because my future opportunities will be limited.
Thank you.