Mr. Speaker, this Thursday, Plaster Rock, New Brunswick, will host the 12th annual World Pond Hockey Championship. The event, often copied but never duplicated, will see 132 men's and women's teams descend on the Tobique for a weekend of fun and good old-fashioned hospitality.
Tournament chair Danny Braun and his organizing committee and hundreds of volunteers deserve special credit for making this event truly a world showcase. Teams will come from all over the U.S. and Canada and hockey hot-bed spots like the Cayman Islands and Puerto Rico to take part. Over the weekend, this little village of 1,100 people will see its population double. It anticipates 8,000 visitors.
World Pond Hockey has contributed significant dollars to community organizations, like the volunteer firefighters, school scholarships and the construction of a new arena.
This year my colleagues from Barrie, Westlock—St. Paul, Fundy Royal and Saint John will join me in New Brunswick as we take on the world on Roulston Lake in an effort to win but, more important, to not get hurt.
I thank all the people who give so much of their time to make this event a great success. I hope to see everyone on the pond, the way hockey was meant to be played.