A very special political history anniversary to note today. It is the birthday of a wonderful lady by the name of Sheila (Cowan) Martin, wife of our 21st Prime Minister. So, it is a special honour to send out birthday greetings to this remarkable woman from my perch here in Kingston. As any student of Prime Ministerial history knows, the spouses of our leaders play a unique and often unsung roll for our nation. They are the true unsung heroes of our political system. These spouses are the most honest advisors any Prime Minister has, and they do so while raising the children along the way, often alone, because their husbands are away on the equally lonely climb to greatness. Mrs. Martin, during her husband’s Premiership, represented Canada at home and abroad with grace, class and skill. So happy birthday Mrs. Martin and a salute today to her and all of the spouses of our leaders. As Canadians, we owe them all for their public service.
Arthur Milnes is an accomplished public historian and award-winning journalist. He was research assistant on The Rt. Hon. Brian Mulroney’s best-selling Memoirs and also served as a speechwriter to then-Prime Minister Stephen Harper and as a Fellow of the Queen’s Centre for the Study of Democracy under the leadership of Tom Axworthy. A resident of Kingston, Ontario, Milnes serves as the in-house historian at the 175 year-old Frontenac Club Hotel.