Christmas is a special opportunity to celebrate goodwill and kind deeds.  However, acts of kindness towards strangers take place throughout the entire year.  They may not be particularly glamorous or newsworthy.  Some are even a bit mundane … though certainly not to those receiving the help.

I’m talking about the people who help my staff and I to help you.  I would first like to thank the federal public servants who process constituents’ files for Canada Pension Plan, Old Age Security, Citizenship, Immigration, Passports, and numerous other federal programs.

I know that ‘civil servants’ get a bad rap.  Yet it’s really “The System” (the one we’re trying to fix), not the individuals, that creates the bureaucratic red tape that sometimes frustrates Canadians.  Generally, the workers themselves are just like all of us, trying to make a living and build a good life for their families.

By the time an individual approaches a public servant or any front-line worker, they’re already frustrated due to a roadblock or a problem.  Understandably, they’re not at their ‘cheery’ best.  It takes a special person, call after call, client after client, to get beyond any antagonism, find out the source of the problem and attempt to fix it. 

Then there are those workers who are willing to go that extra step and ‘think outside the box’, or in this case “The System”, in order to solve a problem for a constituent.  And they have to provide this creative assistance without breaking any rules and guidelines.

Believe it or not, some of the services these federal workers have performed on behalf of a constituent would bring a tear to your eye. 

My staff and I see these touching efforts from those outside the federal government as well.

The staff at Canada Post Offices here in Prince George-Peace River literally go that extra mile for constituents.  Earlier this month, postal workers at one of our local post offices went to great lengths to track a little girl’s passport and ensure it was delivered to her so she could travel with her family.  They didn’t have to do it and there was no reason, other than their own kindness, that compelled them to help this family.

Air Canada is another large organization which often faces the wrath of Canadians.  Yet there too, there are incredible employees who make a call or dig up information that allows a family to travel when they would otherwise be grounded.  This assistance may not make news headlines, but it means so much to the constituents they help.

Many of these gestures of goodwill begin with a call to my office.  I feel very fortunate that my constituency staff possess the resourcefulness, the caring, the passion and the people skills required to help you, or find others who can help you.

Finally, I would like to thank my constituents.  Ours is a vast riding, but you continue to keep in touch and provide me with important feedback necessary to represent your interests in Ottawa.

My thanks to everyone who has helped to make 2006 such a wonderful year.