Mr. Speaker, I rise in the House today to recognize a specific area of my riding, Bowen Island. As the first ever sitting member of Parliament to visit Bowen Island, I am proud to represent its interests.
Bowen Island is an idyllic setting that attracts many artists, sculptures, painters, writers and musicians. In fact, Bowen Island was recently identified as the fourth most artistic community in all of Canada.
Bowen Island, with its abundance of arts and community groups, is in desperate need of a multi-faceted, multi-use stage for all events. This facility would provide a home for a variety of events, including performing arts, literary reading and film screening.
Sharing culture brings richness to any society and encourages deep community spirit, not to mention job creation and economic spin-offs of increased tourism.
I wish to recognize the hard work of the Bowen Island Arts Council, which is dedicated to representing and coordinating the creative efforts and programs of all cultural groups on Bowen Island. I wish to thank it for its dedication to promoting the vibrant art community in our riding.
I also wish to welcome Monte and Gayle Rolston from Madeira Park who are in Ottawa today.