Events and Community Visits

February 15, Iqaluit - National Flag Day

To view the complete photo gallery of this event click here.

  Commissioner Ann Hanson marked National Flag Day with Iqaluit students during ceremonies at all three schools in the capital city -- Inuksuk High School, Nakasuk Elementary School and Joamie Elementary School. She was accompanied by members of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the Canadian Forces, the Canadian Rangers and flag day commitee members.

 

  Standing at attention while the Maple Leaf flag was raised, students gathered at each schooll to sing the national anthem.

  

  Then, the Commissioner talked to the students about the history of Flag Day and its importance. "This year marks the 42nd anniversary of Canada's red and white maple leaft flag," she explained.

 

   On Feb. 15, 1965, the maple leaf  flag was raised for the first time on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, as Canada finally adopted its own flag. But Commissioner Hanson said as far back as 1925, more than 80 years ago, a committee started looking for a new design for a flag and despite more than 2,000 designs for a flag by 1946, none were selected.

 

   A final design -- that of the red and white maple leaf --was created by a flag committee of 15 Parliamentarians. Red and white in honour of Canada's official colours, it displays a single red maple leaf which is the national symbol and traditional emblem of Canada. "The clean, bold lines speak of our shared values, our sense of common purpose and our sense of community," said the Commissioner.

 

   On Feb. 15, 1965 as the Canadian flag was hoisted on Parliament Hill, Prime Minister Lester Pearson said: "This day, the fiteenth day of February 1965, will always remembered as a milestone in Canada's national progress."

  

   The flag is a familiar sight in towns and cities across Canada, noted the Commissioner, and "silently, it speaks for all the citizens of Canada, regardless of their language, their beliefs, their race or their opinions."

 

    "It stands watch over us whether we are at work, at school or at play," said the Commissoner, adding that "it stirs our pride when we see it raised to the sounds of O'Canada at the Olympics."

  

    "We are thankful for a flag that is of our own making, that represents a citizenship that embraces our diversity and invites us to work together to enjoy the wealth and beauty of this great land," she said, asking students, teachers and dignitaries not only to celebrate the flag but also "Canada and what it means to be Canadian."

   

   "Thank you once again. We are quite lucky to live in such a wonderful country," declared the Commissioner, as city councillor Jimmy Kilabuk lead everyone in the Pledge to the Flag.

 

 To view the complete photo gallery of this event click here.