Angels On The Hill

Opening day of the fall session of Parliament sees the MPs exchanging friendly greetings before the wars begin in earnest at Question Period in the afternoon.  I was fortunate enough first thing in the morning to run into some of the maintenance and planning staff in West Block – the building that houses my office.  It’s no exaggeration to state that I think these people are terrific.  I dropped into their offices to say hello, ask how their summer went, and to say how I looked forward to working with them in the months ahead.I was pleased to hear that two of them – Gilles Parent and Angela Storti – were receiving long-service awards last night in the centre hallway of Parliament itself.  Gilles was receiving his 20-year award, and Angela, who helps to clean and make my office presentable for entertaining dignitaries from across the spectrum, was being awarded her 30-years of dedication.  When I asked if I could come to the ceremony and cheer them on, they expressed honest delight at the suggestion.And what a wonderful ceremony it was.  I sat with Jose, a good friend a worker at West Block.  The look of pride on the faces of these very special people was contagious.  Peter Milliken, the Speaker of the House, and Audrey O’Brien, Clerk of the House of Commons, spoke and handed out the awards.Afterwards, we mingled with the award winners and their families, and I was struck by their sheer pride and joy at serving in the institution that is the Parliament of Canada.  Some told me of how they started in the maintenance department and worked their way up.  Others were security officers, or workers in the Printing Office.  I looked around that room and suddenly realized that these were the very people who see to our needs in Parliament.  Every time we get lost, run out of paper, need tech support for our computers, or security when something goes wrong, it is to these people that we turn.And then I thought of what I witnessed at that reception compared to what I had just witnessed at Question Period.  These people aren’t elected representatives, nor are they senators.  But they are quite simply the best that Parliament has to offer.  While MPs heckled and criticized across the hall, these humble folks gathered to celebrate not only their careers, but the very institution of Parliament itself.  They told me of how they loved working in the most precious piece of real estate in the land, and how it was their job to serve.  And they meant it!  They are the angels on the Hill and they have, in more ways than I can count, represented the hallowed halls of the House of Commons in far better fashion than many of us have as MPs.This blog post is just to say “thank you.”  And not just for the quality of care and service you have provided for us as elected representatives, but for actually filling Parliament with meaning, joy and service.  As I was leaving, Speaker Milliken said: “Thanks, Glen, for coming.  It means a lot to these folks.”  These folks! It was me that felt the meaning of it all.  I had just spent 90 minutes with the princesses and princes of Parliament. How could that not ennoble me?  Thank you … every single one of you.