We hope your Thanksgiving includes time to reflect on what we are so fortunate to enjoy - this great community we call Oakville. Our community is filled with beautiful walkways through rich forests combined with vibrant economic centres like Downtown Oakville, Kerr Village, Bronte Village and, more recently, the uptown core.
Our children have access to Ontario's top schools as well as excellent recreational facilities such as the 16 Mile Sports Complex, which will soon have a new library along with a world-class cricket pitch. Our seniors can engage in a vast variety of activities, and supportive housing received a boost as construction began for new senior housing on Kerr Street.
Over 40 per cent of Oakville residents consider themselves visible minorities from many different cultures with unique spiritual convictions. We are so fortunate to enjoy such rich diversity that provides us with opportunities to learn from each other peacefully.
We are also incredibly blessed to be home to the state-of-the-art Oakville Trafalgar Memorial Hospital, whose amazing array of doctors, nurses, social workers, orderlies, and support staff help us during our often difficult circumstances. They do this with talent, skill, knowledge, love and compassion. Alongside these individuals are police officers, paramedics and firefighters who keep us safe.
A group that should never be overlooked is the raft of volunteers who make our community world-class. The 1000s of people who pull together to ensure critical social services are available for individuals who need our help. Without them, many individuals would go without their basic needs being met.
Finally, Oakville, a town known for its rich history and modern traditions, holds a deep connection to the First Nations communities that have inhabited this land for centuries. From the Anishinaabe to the Attawandaron and Haudenosaunee, the lands surrounding the Great Lakes have a profound First Nations heritage. This Thanksgiving, as we gather on the sacred lands of Treaties 14 and 22, unite in solidarity with Indigenous brothers and sisters to pay homage and show respect for Mother Earth and the original stewards of this land.
Happy Thanksgiving!
