Mr. Speaker, on Wednesday, October 22, a tragic scene took place at the National War Memorial, when Corporal Nathan Cirillo was senselessly struck down performing a ceremonial duty on behalf of all Canadians. Today Corporal Cirillo is being laid to rest in Hamilton, and we unite as a nation to grieve.
We are thinking of Corporal Cirillo's family and the family of Warrant Officer Patrice Vincent, who was killed two days earlier in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu.
Let us keep them in our thoughts, for it is they who have been forced to endure the greatest loss of all.
It is my hope that these tragedies are a thing of the past, but that we remember and learn from them. The sacrifice of Corporal Cirillo and Warrant Officer Vincent's lives demand no less.
Today we are mourning the loss of one of our sons, and we offer our deepest condolences to his loved ones.