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Governor General and Lieutenant Governor Visit Holland Bloorview
On the occasion of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities (December 3), Holland Bloorview had the pleasure of hosting the Queen’s representatives for Canada and Ontario. Their Excellencies the Right Honourable David Johnston, Governor General of Canada, and Mrs. Sharon Johnston visited Holland Bloorview along with Their Honours the Honourable David C. Onley, Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, and Mrs. Ruth Ann Onley. This visit was part of the Governor General’s two-day official visit to Ontario.
Their Excellencies and Their Honours made special visits to the Bloorview School and the Bloorview Research Institute. Within the Research Institute, our guests were extremely impressed by students’ demonstrations of the Virtual Musical Instrument as well as a project that investigates the effect of active gaming in children with cerebral palsy using Nintendo Wii. At the School, Their Excellencies and Their Honours visited the Bloorview School’s integrated kindergarten classroom, a unique program created by partnering a class of typically developing Junior and Senior Kindergarten students with a class of Junior and Senior Kindergarten students with disabilities. Their Excellencies and Their Honours joined the children in singing ‘Oh Canada!’ and chatted with kids involved in classroom activities from block-building to “fishing for animals”. As a farewell, the students sang a special song with guitar accompaniment, and presented Their Honours and Their Excellencies with their very own CD of recorded songs from the School. The Governor General said he looked forward to sharing the CD with his grandchildren!
The event ended with remarks from the Lieutenant Governor and the Governor General.
Additional Background:
Canada’s Governor General: Sworn in on October 1, 2010, David Johnston is the 28th governor general since Confederation. In his inaugural address, he described his three pillars for his mandate as support for families and children, the reinforcement of learning and innovation, and encouragement of philanthropy and volunteerism. www.gg.ca.
Ontario’s Lieutenant Governor: David C. Onley is Ontario’s 28th Lieutenant Governor. He has held this honour since September 2007. The Honourable David C. Onley has championed disability issues on many fronts and for many years. Having lived with polio and post-polio syndrome since the age of three, he has broken through social barriers and become a role model. www.lt.gov.on.ca