Proud to be Canadian

In an effort to have the area declared the most patriotic riding in Canada, Ottawa-Orléans MP Royal Galipeau launched a Proud to be Canadian campaign leading up to Canada Day.

The objective of the campaign is to have as many houses as possible display the Canadian flag on Canada Day. To that end, all households in the riding will receive a large paper flag, reply card and a detailed explanation of the campaign from Galipeau in the mail, along with facts about the flag and an invitation to Petrie Island’s Canada Day celebration.

Residents will be asked to cut out the flag and place it on their door or in a window visible to pedestrians. Households that want to be counted as participants must also fill out the reply card and mail it back to the MPs office. No postage is required. “My hope is that this campaign will get people excited about Canada Day and give our community a means to voice their pride in this great country,” Galipeau said in a released statement. “I am optimistic that by Canada Day, nearly every household in this riding will have a flag on display.”

According to Galipeau, the concept behind the campaign was developed during a discussion among MPs on how best to celebrate Canada Day. Several of them have since agreed to launch the “Proud to be Canadian!” campaigns in their constituencies.

The ridings that participate in the campaign will also be entered in a contest for the title of “Most Patriotic Riding in Canada.” The riding with the highest percentage of households displaying a flag on Canada Day will be declared the winner.

The winner will be announced to the House of Commons when Parliament resumes in the fall.

About 50 to 60 MPs are involved in the contest, Galipeau’s communications assistant Kyle Simunovic said, adding it will only cost five to six cents per household to mail the newsletter containing the paper flag to the approximately 40,100 homes in Ottawa-Orléans.

Since the level of participation in each riding will be measured using the reply cards, it is critical individuals who participate return their reply cards to Galipeau’s office, he continued. “It’s easy to forget sometimes that we truly do live in the greatest country in the world,” Galipeau said. “I hope this campaign gets people thinking about how fortunate we are to be Canadians and why we need to be proud of Canada and what it represents.”

Galipeau also indicated he will participate in all the Canada Day celebrations at Petrie Island, and invites all residents of Ottawa–Orléans to do likewise. “I can’t think of a better way to celebrate Canada Day and show our patriotism,” he said.