Remarks by
The Honourable Anita Neville, P.C., O.M.
Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba
WOMEN’S MUSICAL CLUB OF WINNIPEG 130th ANNIVERSARY GALA CHAMPAGNE BRUNCH
The Leaf, Assiniboine Park
Saturday, April 13, 2024, 11:00 a.m.
(please check against delivery)
Dear friends, it’s a pleasure to join you in this beautiful setting to celebrate a great Manitoban and a great Manitoban organization.
As we gather in this Diversity Garden, we acknowledge the deep-rooted diversity in a province that is the ancestral and present-day home of the Anishinaabe, Cree, Dakota, Dene, Inuit and Red River Metis peoples.
As Manitobans and as Canadians, we acknowledge the responsibilities of the treaties and we are committed to reconciliation, healing and creating opportunities for all.
Earlier this year, I had the opportunity to celebrate the 130th anniversary of the Women’s Musical Club of Winnipeg at a reception at Government House. It was an evening to consider the remarkable accomplishments of an organization that has done so much to bring music to Winnipeg and foster the development of young musicians in this city.
Today, as we support the Women’s Musical Club at this brunch, we have the good fortune to hear from a maker of music, a teller of stories and an inspiration to millions – who is also a past winner of the WMC’s music scholarship.
Like you, I have followed Tomson Highway’s accomplishments for decades – as playwright, novelist, memoirist, concert pianist and as a builder of understanding between Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities, and as a proud Manitoban.
And like you, I can’t wait to hear his performance today in this remarkable Winnipeg landmark.
Since the opening of this beautiful botanical garden in late 2022, Manitobans have been delighted to travel the world through the diversity of plant life. Today, we will be transported by the words and music of our special guest.
By supporting music and music education, The Women’s Musical Club of Winnipeg has been helping Manitobans journey through a world of melody and harmony for well over a century.
I thank all who have made that possible and who are helping to ensure these journeys continue through your support of this event. Thank you to all who have made such a beautiful occasion possible.
Merci. Meegwich. Shalom
