GOVERNOR GENERAL VISITS SASKATCHEWAN

Premier Brad Wall today announced Her Excellency the Right Honourable Michaëlle Jean, Governor General of Canada, will visit Saskatchewan August 23 to 24.

"We are honoured to receive the Governor General to our province," Wall said. "Her dedication to empowering Canadian women and engaging the country's youth through open and constructive dialogue has truly been exemplary. I would like to extend my warmest welcome to Her Excellency on behalf of the people of Saskatchewan."

After arriving in Regina on August 23, the Governor General will tour Government House and attend a private luncheon hosted by Lieutenant Governor Dr. Gordon Barnhart, before meeting with the Premier. She will also walk through the grounds where a tree planting will take place to commemorate her visit. The public is invited to attend the tree planting ceremony at 1:30 p.m.

"It is a great pleasure to have the opportunity to host Her Excellency in Saskatchewan, both to showcase our amazing province and to thank the Governor General for her extraordinary contributions to Canada and to the world," Barnhart said. "I encourage those in Regina on August 23 to join us in the beautiful Edwardian Gardens at Government House, where the public will have an opportunity to meet Her Excellency at a tree planting ceremony."

Her Excellency will then travel to Saskatoon to take part in a youth dialogue at the Saskatoon Downtown Youth Centre (EGADZ) that will focus on the challenges faced by today's youth and ways to foster change, and attend a gala hosted by the Province of Saskatchewan in her honour.

On August 24, she will visit the University of Saskatchewan where she will attend a discussion in celebration of the Canadian Bill of Rights and tour the Canadian Light Source Synchrotron, before departing for La Ronge to attend a community luncheon.

The Governor General's last visit to Saskatchewan was in May 2006, where she met with members of Regina's First Nations and inner-city communities.

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For more information, contact:

Kathy Young
Executive Council
Regina
Phone: 306-787-0425
Email: kathy.young@gov.sk.ca