Mr. Speaker, I would like to pay tribute to one of the oldest and largest fraternal organizations in the world. One hundred and twenty years ago, on April 26, 1876, the first Canadian Court of the Independent Order of Foresters was instituted in London, Ontario.
Through Court No. 1, London served as Canadian headquarters of the IOF until 1888. Since that time the IOF in Canada has expanded to nearly 500 family oriented courts. There are more than one million members in Canada, the United States and Britain.
An outgrowth of the Friendly Societies that originated hundreds of years ago to help one another in times of distress, Forestry continues these noble traditions in the community.
London's Court No. 1 has logged thousands of volunteer hours in numerous charitable endeavours. Its members are to be saluted on this memorable occasion.