Mr. Speaker, Thomas Torokvei was a proud Canadian. Last February 24, the chairman of IPEX Inc., a leading Canadian philanthropist, businessman, husband and father, passed away, but his legacy lives on.
Today I rise to carve permanently into the records of the House a tribute to this great man and the life that he lived.
When the people of Walkerton, Ontario, lost seven lives from tainted water, Tom quietly donated four kilometres of pipe so that water could be restored as quickly as possible.
This spirit of giving and generosity was nurtured from a long line of Estonian freedom fighters, including his beloved late father, who escaped communism in a small two-oar dory.
It is out of this long struggle for freedom and the triumph of finding it here in Canada that Tom and his family constructed a business that brings jobs to thousands and hope to us all.
Our hearts go out to his family and their friends as they continue to build on this legacy.