Mr. Speaker, as we enter the Christmas season, a time many call “the season of giving”, I wanted to salute and celebrate the many organizations in Surrey that give to the community all year long. For individuals or families in distress, with long-term challenges or short-term difficulties, these organizations, powered by so many volunteers and donors, offer a beacon of hope, from food banks to shelters from the weather or the storms of life. They offer a pathway to a better life in a new country for the many newcomers who settle in Surrey. They open their doors to people of their faith and to those who would otherwise lose faith. So let us all give them something back, a donation perhaps, or some of our time over the Christmas season.
Maybe we can start here, by standing and applauding those folks we all know back home who give and enrich our communities all year long.