Supplied…
On this day (June 7th) 2 years ago, our government was elected to lead Ontario. As I look back on my time as your
Member of Provincial Parliament, I am overwhelmed with a sense of pride. Sault Ste. Marie is my home. It is
the place I learned to ride a bike, went to school, established a career, and the place my wife and I raise our
family. Sault Ste. Marie is in my heart and I only want the very best for it. There are no words that can describe
how much it means to me to represent you. Every day of these last several years, good or bad, rain or shine, it
has truly been an honour to wake up and go to work fighting for you.
It has been an incredible experience to work alongside so many amazing community members and
organizations to address key challenges faced by our city and to create many promising opportunities within
our city, whether working to protect the future of the community Christmas tree or to maintain jobs and
pensions at Algoma Steel. Thank you Sault Ste. Marie for placing your trust in me.
It is because you gave me this opportunity that I have the privilege to serve in Premier, Doug Ford’s cabinet in
the Ministry of Colleges and Universities. I am humbled to serve such an incredible sector, overseeing all
public and private colleges and universities and Indigenous Institutes in Ontario. It also includes Ontario’s
research and science division with research innovation centres and hospitals throughout the province.
Ontario’s advanced education, research and science sector is known around the world for its excellence, and I
am proud to be able to work with the sector to help unlock our province’s potential. The Ministry of Colleges
and Universities is one of Ontario’s key socio-economic development Ministries and in my role as the Minister
of Colleges and Universities, it is a privilege and a pleasure to work with Algoma University and Sault College,
two prized jewels within our province and key economic drivers for Sault Ste. Marie.
While the last several months have been a challenge for us all, we are all in it together. There is a spirit in Sault
Ste. Marie, a sense of resilience that we have come to wear as a badge of honour. That Sault Strong Spirit has
been on full display throughout this difficult period. There are so many amazing members of our community
working together, doing their part, and then some, to help keep our community safe. Every day we have
worked around the clock to flatten the curve and collectively our efforts have helped save thousands of lives. I
want to especially thank all our frontline health and long-term care staff as well as our essential and emergency
service workers such as the police, fire and paramedics. And to all of you who have donated your time, energy
and resources, whether delivering groceries, making masks or sanitizers and hosting fundraisers, your efforts
have helped Sault Ste. Marie stay positive and safe.
I look forward to continuing to work together, as we work to re-open our city and province and I know that we
will emerge from this difficult time stronger than ever.
Stay safe everyone!
Ross Romano