Mr. Speaker, former mayor George LeBlanc, who passed away on February 3 after a long illness, was a leader in every way. We saw it through his charity work with great organizations like the Friends of The Moncton Hospital Foundation, The Moncton Hospital, Moncton Headstart and Moncton Youth Residences, to name just a few.
We saw it in his two decades serving on city council and, for eight of those years, being the mayor. Mayor LeBlanc led our city through an unprecedented building boom in our downtown, which still continues today. When a shooting rampage rocked our normally peaceful community, George articulated our grief and our strength to the nation. George LeBlanc led by example, with his honesty, his empathy and his quiet resolve to always make our city better.
I want to offer my deepest condolences to his wife Kathy, his son Jordan, his daughter Brittany, his grandchildren and also his extended family and friends. He will be missed. May he rest in peace.