Honourable senators, every year, when March comes along, it brings with it a renewed energy and many things to celebrate, including the long-awaited spring, the International Day of La Francophonie, World Poetry Day and World Theatre Day. Tomorrow, March 27, we will mark the 59th edition of World Theatre Day.

Every year, these celebrations are a perfect opportunity to remember how the arts enrich our lives and to highlight the invaluable contributions made by artists and cultural workers to the well-being of our society.

Today I would like to pay tribute to someone who has spent over 20 years working to improve artists’ living conditions and help develop Acadian society.

Carmen Gibbs, Executive Director of the Association acadienne des artistes professionnel.le.s du Nouveau-Brunswick, is a kind-hearted woman of action and conviction who is also a committed activist. She is one of those special Acadian and Canadian citizens who help advance our society and transform our communities.

This is a woman with boundless energy who brings people together. She loves artists and loves life. She took the helm of that association when it was still young and new and has helped shape it into the mature organization it is today.

During these 20 years, she has surrounded herself with passionate people and has worked on exceptional artistic and cultural projects, mobilizing the driving forces of Canada’s Acadian and Francophone societies.

This dedicated visionary was behind one of the biggest initiatives in Acadian society, the États généraux des arts et de la culture, a francophone arts and culture summit, which led to the development of a true roadmap for ensuring the cultural advancement of the Acadian people.

Carmen Gibbs was able to bring together leaders from every sector of society, including elected members, citizens, officials, and people young and old, who all sat around the same table for several years envisioning Acadia’s cultural future. She always says that when politicians and civil society really work together, we can accomplish great things.

In order to promote artists, she became a producer of one of the key cultural events in the Canadian Francophonie: Les Éloizes, an awards gala that recognizes the work of Acadian and francophone artists and that is held at a different location every year, bringing the event to the people.

She firmly believes that the arts are indispensable for developing and moulding engaged citizens, so she launched core projects in partnership with the education sector.

Her unwavering solidarity has led her to forge fruitful alliances with organizations in Quebec and throughout the Francophonie.

As you can see, honourable colleagues, Carmen Gibbs is part of every cause, every battle and every accomplishment.

I had the great privilege of working with her for many years, and I witnessed her persuasion skills first-hand. I should warn all of Canada’s elected officials and public servants that if you are meeting with Ms. Gibbs, make sure you are well prepared and have clear answers for her. In other words, brace yourself, because her persuasion skills are unlimited.

Carmen Gibbs is above all a caring woman with a great love for her fellow citizens and for life. She is a hard worker, but she also lives life to the fullest, because she has the invaluable gift of being able to perfectly balance her love of work and love of life.

Carmen Gibbs, thank you for your contributions to our society, and long live the Association acadienne des artistes profesionnel.le.s du Nouveau-Brunswick.