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NEWS RELEASE (CNS954) -->> LIEUTENANT-GOVERNOR'S HOLIDAY
MESSAGE




LIEUTENANT-GOVERNOR'S HOLIDAY MESSAGE
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1996 Holiday Season Message by His Honour, the Honourable J.
James Kinley, Lieutenant-Governor of Nova Scotia, Government
House, Halifax:

I am pleased, as the Queen's representative in Nova Scotia, to
have this third occasion on which to extend Christmas Greetings
to you, my fellow Nova Scotians.

In 1994 Nova Scotia was visited by Her Majesty The Queen and the
Duke of Edinburgh. Last year the G-7 leaders were hosted in Nova
Scotia by the Prime Minister. This year, 1996, my wife Grace and
I have been busier than ever, travelling throughout the province
meeting you and sharing many varied and enjoyable events.

On this occasion, I want to mention especially one part of life
in Nova Scotia which was part of my life in my younger years:
Nova Scotia's community of men and women of the sea and their
ships. It was most prominent in our activities this year.

The Year of the Wooden Boat is a commemoration of the long
heritage of wooden shipbuilding in this province which continues
to this day. Th Wooden Ship Festival in Mahone Bay has become a
major attraction for Nova Scotians and tourists visiting from
outside the province.

Our heritage of shipbuilding in Atlantic Canada continues. The
patrol frigates built in New Brunswick and the coastal defence
vessels built in Halifax are at the cutting edge of naval and
marine technology, once more putting Atlantic Canada in the
forefront of ship design, building and operation worldwide. These
vessels have become part of the activities of the Port of Halifax
and other ports in Nova Scotia where operations and ceremonial
visits are carried out.

Indeed, in April I was thrilled to have a day at sea on the newly
commissioned HMCS St. John's with naval and military attaches
from many foreign countries. The next day, I inspected HMCS
Kingston, built in Halifax, the lead ship in the Maritime Coastal
Defence Vessel project.

In May, Grace and I toured a variety of ships from different
nations visiting Halifax: the Royal Danish Navy ship Falster, the
French Naval minesweeper Ceres, and in June, the American sailing
ship Patriot State of the Maine Maritime Academy. I was also a
guest aboard the British Mine Counter Measures Vessel, HMS
Chiddingfold, for the MARCOT Exercises held in Shelburne. In
Halifax, in June, Grace and I visited and toured the massive
American aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt and participated
in a reception and sunset ceremony onboard this most powerful
naval vessel.

During the summer, I was a guest of the Royal Netherlands Naval
ship Bloys Von Treslong, a modern destroyer with NATO's Standing
Force Atlantic Fleet, and on another occasion a guest aboard the
Italian Naval Training Ship Orsa Maggiore, a beautiful sailing
ship on a world cruise with cadets of the Italian Navy.

Forty-one cruise liners visited Halifax this summer adding
greatly to our tourist industry and activity in our ports. Grace
and I were dinner guests on the cruise ship Island Breeze which
made several visits to Halifax during the summer.

Even larger container ships call at the Port of Halifax on a year
round schedule, slipping quietly into harbour, discharging and
loading cargo and departing almost unnoticed by the general
population, but making a tremendous impact not only on the Port
of Halifax, but on the province generally.

Our position as representatives of the Queen enables us to view
the marine activities of this Province of Nova Scotia in a way
not available to most Nova Scotians. It has impressed upon us the
complexity of our marine industries and the tremendous impact
which it has upon our economy and the lives of our many citizens.

While in Cape Breton during July, we visited our own schooner
Bluenose II in Baddeck, and HMCS Fredericton in North Sydney.

On September 20th, I was a dinner guest aboard the French Naval
Ship Commandant l'Herminier.

In October, Grace and I were present at the commemoration
ceremonies in Sydney of another Halifax-built minesweeper, HMCS
Glace Bay. I had the pleasure to travel aboard this modern vessel
on its return trip to Halifax.

In November, I was a dinner guest onboard HMCS Nipigon when the
Minister of Fisheries for Canada, the Honourable Fred Mifflin, a
former admiral in the Canadian Navy, was guest speaker.

I had the opportunity to officially open a wooden shipyard at
Newport Landing, where the topsail schooner Avon Pride is under
construction. It will be a tourist attraction and a commemoration
of the thousands of wooden ships that were built in the Minas
Basin area and throughout Nova Scotia for generations.

Grace and I took part in a host of other activities in Nova
Scotia throughout this year, but time does not permit me to
mention them all. Two world class events, however, stand out in
my mind: the 29th World Conference and Official Opening
Ceremonies of the Girl Guides and Girl Scouts was held at Acadia
University in Wolfville and attended by the Right Honourable Jean
Chretien, Prime Minister of Canada, and 550 Guide leaders from
134 countries, a truly world class event.

In August, Grace and I joined Premier John Savage, the Honourable
Sheila Copps, Deputy Prime Minister of Canada and Minister of
Canadian Heritage, the mayor and people of Lunenburg, and many
visitors, to recognize the designation of Old Town Lunenburg as a
UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The Christmas Season is a time when we meet with our families and
friends and remember our activities throughout the year. I am
pleased that I can take this opportunity to remind you of some of
the activities which my wife and I have shared with many of you
throughout the year. It was a good year of which we have many
pleasant memories. We hope you have the same. Nova Scotia is a
good place in which to live.

We extend to you in friendship our best wishes for a Happy
Holiday Season and good health and happiness throughout the
coming year.

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trp                   Dec. 17, 1996 - 9:55 a.m.