Mr. Speaker, volunteers are the glue that holds the community together. No agency embodies the spirit of volunteerism more than the St. John Ambulance, an international organization committed to service for all.
This is a banner year for the agency: the Order of St. John is celebrating 900 years of service and the Canadian St. John Ambulance is celebrating 115 years of community service.
St. John Ambulance work is performed by two distinct and mutually dependent groups: the brigade, uniformed volunteers seen in Peterborough and across Canada providing community services such as first aid at local events; and the association, a network of medical professionals and instructors who provide first aid and health promotion courses.
Each year, the Canadian chapter provides over two million hours of voluntary service and trains 800,000 citizens in lifesaving first aid and CPR techniques.
I congratulate the St. John Ambulance for its tireless work on behalf of others and wish it another 900 years of success.