For Immediate Release
Check Against Delivery
Sunday, January 12, 2020
Mayor Crombie delivered the following address at her annual Mayor’s New Year’s Levee at City Hall:
“Good afternoon. Bonjour. Aanii Boozhoo.
Welcome to City Hall.
While we come together to celebrate the beginning of a new year, it is hard not to feel sad.
We rang in the New Year with such promise, only to have our elation turn to sorrow with the news from Iran.
176 lives senselessly lost, 57 of them our fellow Canadians.
It seems every community was impacted.
Mississauga mourns the loss of Zaynab Asadi Lari, her brother Mohamad, Kian and Hamidreza Djvadi-Asll, Shadi Jamshidi, Neda Sadighi, Amir Ovaysi, his wife and young daughter and Faezeh Falsafi and her two children, Daniel and Dorsa Ghandchi.
These bright souls lived, worked and studied in Mississauga.
While their voice fell silent this week, their light will never be extinguished.
We must remember those who’ve been lost, but we must also honour their memory by recommitting to making the world a better place; to fostering our humanity; to uniting, not dividing; and to be our brother’s and sister’s keeper.
The promise of New Year allows us an opportunity to remember and reflect, but also to move forward to honour those lives lost and to make the world a better place for everyone.
I ask that you join me in a moment of silence to honour the lives of those we lost.
On a lighter note, it’s officially the dawn of a new decade!
Happy New Year Mississauga! Happy new decade!
I hope you all were able to take some well-deserved time off over the holidays to spend with family and friends.
I want to thank our young and inspiring youth poet laureate, Pujita, for emceeing today’s event and for introducing our dignitaries.
I want to personally welcome my team of committed Councillors who are here today, including:
- Stephen Dasko, Ward 1
- Karen Ras, Ward 2
- Chris Fonseca, Ward 3
- John Kovac, Ward 4
- Ron Starr, Ward 6
- Matt Mahoney, Ward 8
Please know that your Council and City staff always have the best interests of Mississauga at heart and are working hard to move our City forward.
It is wonderful to see so many of our residents gathered here today to celebrate the New Year, an exciting time brimming with promise and opportunity.
2020 is truly special because we are ringing in a new decade…the twenty-twenties…
Perhaps our “roaring twenties?”
A new decade provides us a unique opportunity to reflect on the past decade and look toward our bright future…
Mississauga has grown and changed for the better over the past ten years…
From celebrating Canada’s 150th anniversary to welcoming the Olympic Torch and hosting the Pan Am Games…
We have stepped up on the world stage in a way like never before…
This past year in particular, Mississauga gained global recognition…
Over 150,000 people took in the historic Raptor’s Championship at Jurassic Park West…
Celebration Square also hosted the “She The North” Rally, to honour our hometown hero, Bianca Andreescu and her historic US Open Win.
We embraced public transit and a sustainable future by securing full funding for the Hurontario LRT and approving the City’s first Climate Change Strategy.
And we approved two master-planned communities that will encompass residential, commercial, recreation, entertainment, culture and innovation all in one location …
These communities will revitalize and reanimate our waterfront, making it an international destination…
In 2019, Mississauga took important steps forward to realizing our full potential.
People are looking at Mississauga differently, as an established, growing urban city.
And that’s a good thing.
While we are gaining momentum as a global city and have much to be proud of, we still have more work to do.
Over the past decade, we’ve seen our world become increasingly divided and polarized…
Politically, socially and spiritually.
We are facing a global climate crisis or a “mass extinction” as Greta Thunberg calls it… that can no longer be ignored.
Income inequality continues to grow, and affordability remains a challenge.
Nationalism and division are increasingly taking hold around the world…
This saddens me.
Now more than ever, we must do more to stand up for our values of inclusion and unity…
We must reaffirm our commitment to humanity and to preserving our environment for generations to come
As we enter 2020, let us make this the decade of difference.
Let this be the decade we move the needle forward, not backward.
Let this be the decade for change and hope for a bright and sustainable future.
I truly believe that Mississauga can be a beacon of hope in the world – as one of the most diverse cities in the world, our city is a place where people from all walks of life live together in harmony, and more importantly, where everyone can succeed.
Mississauga is a caring city, a place where everyone belongs and where everyone can grow and thrive…
We’ve seen that generosity and dedication time and time again, whether that is exceeding our food drive goals year over year, helping newly immigrated families settle in their new homes or welcoming young climate activists to City Hall who are passionate about a greener future…
Let’s keep up this momentum.
Let’s continue to do good in this world and fight to make a difference.
Let’s continue to set an example for the rest of the world to follow by opening up our hearts and our minds.
And asking ourselves.
What can I do to make our city an even better place?
To ensure it remains a place where our children and their grandchildren can grow and thrive for generations to come.
I challenge you to do what you can this year to make a difference in the lives of others…
Small, random acts of kindness can go a long way in making the lives of others better.
Hold a door, shovel a neighbour’s driveway, smile…
Added together, these random acts can make a big difference in the lives of others.
Everyone is fighting a battle you know nothing about.
Be kind.
Kindness sustains our humanity.
There are so many things to look forward to this year…
As we head into 2020 and beyond, all eyes are on Mississauga…
We are not the sleepy bedroom community of old, but a dynamic, diverse and thriving city with so much to offer the world
We are developing a distinct identity as a global city…
We are approaching 50 years old and are building on strong foundations with an eye to the future.
In 2020 and beyond, we will remain focused on breaking congestion and getting Mississauga moving…
Building affordable housing and ensuring everyone has a safe, affordable place to live…
And building a safe and sustainable community, maintaining our high quality of life and ensuring Mississauga is treated fairly and equitably by all levels of government
I say with confidence that the 21st Century has been, and remains, Mississauga’s for the taking, full of opportunity and possibility.
We have a plan and we are delivering.
As we look ahead, there is much more to do.
I want to thank Council and City staff for their commitment to excellence and to building a great City, and to each of you here today, and all residents in this great city for your ongoing commitment to making Mississauga a great place to live.
Working together, Mississauga will remain a leader and a global destination synonymous with prosperity, vibrancy, and life.
In 2020, we will remain a place people choose to be.
A place that welcomes everyone.
A place where everyone has an equal opportunity to grow and succeed.
On behalf of Council, I want to wish everyone a Happy New Year!
Thank you for taking the time to join us today.
I hope that 2020 is your best year yet, full of opportunity, happiness and prosperity.
See you out on the rink!
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