Honourable senators, I received a notice from the Leader of the Opposition who requests, pursuant to rule 4-3(1), that the time provided for the consideration of Senators’ Statements be extended today for the purpose of paying tribute to the Honourable David P. Smith, former senator, whose death occurred on February 26, 2020.

I remind senators that pursuant to our rules, each senator will be allowed only 3 minutes and they may speak only once and the time for Tributes shall not exceed 15 minutes.

Honourable senators, I rise today to say a few words about our former colleague Senator David Smith. A stalwart of the Liberal family, a dedicated public servant and, as he often referred to himself, the son of a preacher and, of course, a friend to so many here in the Senate. Always with a smile, David was good for a story or two. I heard many of those stories over many late evenings here in the chamber and when Liberal senators would gather in his office for camaraderie during the bells for votes. It is those memories that will always stay with me.

Senator Smith was full of stories about a lifetime spent in politics, from the campaign trail and from political adversaries and friends. But honourable senators, it is his compassion for disadvantaged Canadians that I want to speak about today. What many don’t know is that David Smith played a major role in the inclusion for the equality of persons with disabilities in Canada’s Charter of Rights. As a new Liberal MP in 1980, David was appointed as chair of an all-party parliamentary committee to hold public hearings on disability issues as the UN had declared 1981 to be the International Year of Disabled Persons.

What became clear to David, as chair of this committee, was the importance of amending the Charter of Rights to include those with disabilities. He took it upon himself to approach members of Parliament from all political stripes in the other place to press the importance of including those with disabilities in the Charter of Rights. Many of us remember how persuasive, persistent and charming that David could be. His efforts paid off.

On January 28, 1981, another committee that was considering the new Charter of Rights unanimously voted to amend the proposed Charter to entrench equality for people with disabilities as a constitutional right. This was an incredible achievement and one that Senator Smith deserves recognition for, even though he did not seek it. I was struck by the comment of David Lepofsky, the Chair of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act Alliance, who on hearing of David’s passing said:

Rest in peace David Smith, with our undying gratitude for what you have done for everyone in Canada for generations to come.

Honourable senators, Canada has lost a lifelong dedicated public servant, his community lost a passionate voice and many of us here have lost a friend. On behalf of the progressive Senate group and his former Liberal colleagues, my thoughts are with his wife, Heather, and his family during this difficult time.

Honourable senators, I have a picture in my mind of David sitting down behind the pearly gates with a new audience to listen and saying, “Did I ever tell you the story about?”

Thank you, honourable senators.

Honourable senators, I also rise today to remember our former colleague Senator David Smith who represented Ontario in the Senate of Canada for almost 14 years. As many have said since he passed away last month, Senator Smith was the ultimate “happy warrior.” His father was a Pentecostal preacher, and his two brothers followed in their father’s footsteps to serve as evangelical preachers as well. Obviously, Senator Smith didn’t join their line of work and took his own path to public service, but I believe his faith was the basis for his joyful spirit, compassion and generosity. For all these qualities and more, his former colleagues on all sides of this chamber are saddened by his recent passing.

Senator Smith was a proud Liberal, and even when the leader of his party removed him and his Senate colleagues from caucus, he remained loyal to the party he had supported and served his entire adult life. He understood the Liberal Party of Canada inside and out, from his school days as president of the Carleton University Young Liberals, to his years in the trenches organizing with Keith Davey, eventually serving as a member of Parliament for Don Valley East and Minister of State for Small Business and Tourism, campaign chair for Jean Chrétien’s three federal election victories and ultimately, of course, as a senator.

Senator Smith once said in our Centre Block chamber:

I often equate political instinct to an ear for music: One has to be born with it; if one is not born with an ear for music, one can go to a thousand concerts and still be out of tune.

He had that political instinct in spades, and he recognized it and appreciated it in others, even if they didn’t share his party affiliation. As an advocate here at home for the rights of Canadians with disabilities as well as for basic human rights for the people of Iran, he also understood the importance of being a voice for those who don’t often have one.

Senator Smith took his leave from the Senate of Canada less than four years ago. It is heartbreaking that he was not able to enjoy as long a retirement as he had surely earned after a lifetime in politics. His wife, Heather, had just retired as Chief Justice of Ontario’s Superior Court of Justice last summer.

On behalf of the entire Conservative caucus and indeed all honourable senators, I extend sincere condolences to Heather, their three children and five granddaughters. May they find comfort in knowing how greatly he was admired and respected by all who knew him.

Senator Smith would address me on a regular basis as “Brother Plett” when we met, and I think it was because of our joint faith. In closing, I want to say: Brother Smith, rest in peace.

Honourable senators, I want to add a few words of tribute to our friend, the Honourable David Smith, particularly on behalf of Senator D. Black, his longtime law partner. Senator D. Black is not with us this week.

For decades, David Smith was a fixture in the Canadian legal community and the political life of the country. He was a passionate Canadian and Torontonian and served as president of the Young Liberals under Prime Minister Pearson in the 1960s, a Toronto alderman and deputy mayor in the 1970s, an MP and cabinet minister in the 1980s, a leader of the successful Liberal Party campaigns in the 1990s and 2000s and as a senator here. That is how most of us got to know him.

He was a specialist in municipal law. He helped forge the skyline of Toronto. He served as the chair of FMC, now Dentons Canada, tying together the largest national law firm capable of serving diverse clients in both languages. He continued as Chair Emeritus of Dentons until he retired from that role in 2017.

He had a life punctuated with great achievements, but David’s proudest accomplishment was the success of his family and especially his wife of 50 years, retired Chief Justice Heather Smith, their three children and five grandchildren.

When I arrived here as a new senator, he was noticeable. He was noticeable because he didn’t sit down very much. He was back and forth, and he could have been the senator for any team in this place because he was always buzzing around talking to people. We were all his brothers.

Senator Plett, I remembered that he referred to people that way when you mentioned it.

He was kind, curious, friendly and the absolute picture of gentlemanly behaviour, but he was a partisan. He proved that you can be a partisan and be nice and be liked. He lived his values. We are poorer for his absence.

Honourable senators, reading this statement has come much too soon. It seems like it was just yesterday that we were all reading tributes to Senator David Smith. There we were in May — only four years ago in the historic Senate Chamber — talking about his accomplishments, and there he was in the front benches enjoying every word. David Smith loved a good political story, and he loved telling them.

I don’t know what it was. Maybe it was because we were both ministers’ sons or, as he would say, PKs, or preachers’ kids. Maybe it was because we saw eye to eye — not on all issues — but we saw eye to eye. Sometimes it pays to be short. You don’t have to stretch as much.

Seriously, much has been said about David Smith the politician, the organizer and storyteller. Like Senator Cordy, I want to focus on one aspect of his life that has acted like a beacon for me in the Senate.

He cared deeply about others, especially those with physical and intellectual disabilities. That was long before my time in the Senate.

The year was 1981, and MP David Smith was the chair of the House of Commons Special Committee on the Disabled and the Handicapped. “Handicapped” was the terminology used in those days. I have the report with me; it’s called Obstacles. It makes for a good read, with 130 recommendations such as the following: removing the stigma surrounding the disabled; changing attitudes; improving housing; reducing unemployment; providing accessible transportation, communication and accessibility. It was about human rights and inclusion.

David Smith and his committee listened to the stories of 12 Canadians, and it was their stories that framed the report. Politicians should read it today.

Shortly after that, and after relentlessly badgering Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, the first draft of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms was tabled. David Smith was the driving force for the inclusion of the words “mental and physical disability” in equality rights. It’s right there in subsection 15(1), where it states:

Every individual is equal before and under the law and has the right to the equal protection and equal benefit of the law without discrimination and, in particular, without discrimination based on race, national or ethnic origin, colour, religion, sex, age or mental or physical disability.

Honourable senators, a politician can win campaigns and an organizer can win campaigns, but nothing can match winning at life. It’s a motto we use at the Special Olympics — winning at life — and that’s what David Smith did. He won at life because he helped others build a better life in a world of inclusion.

Thank you, Senator Smith, and thank you, honourable senators.

Honourable senators, it’s with a heavy heart and sadness that I, too, rise today to pay tribute to the late Honourable David Smith.

I associate myself with all the wonderful remarks my colleagues have made. I will not go into his long, incredible political accomplishments, but I know he began his Senate tenure in 2002. In 2009, when I first began my time here in this chamber, I recall clearly that, across the way — he usually sat sort of slightly to my right or left, but he was on the other side — every day, he would either be waving or blowing kisses, or both. Every once in a while, I’d receive a note that he had sent through the pages across the aisle or he would drop off a note as he was passing. I have these fond memories of our dear former colleague and friend.

I didn’t know then that this veteran senator, who was such a good friend and a “Seoul brother” — he loved Korea too; he loved the Korea file as well as being a brother in Christ — but I didn’t know he was this juggernaut of politics in the Liberal Party. He was someone I got to know as a colleague who was so caring.

On Wednesdays, we attended the morning prayer breakfast together weekly. We shared heartfelt testimonies and prayers for our colleagues, families, nation and world. It was a time to reflect and spend together in faith and friendship. Often, he would break out in song, be it “Amazing Grace” or “How Great Thou Art,” and those are the memories I cherish most.

David also served as the vice-chair of the Canada-Korea Interparliamentary Friendship Group from the very beginning, and he shared a genuine fondness for Korea and our beloved veterans of the Korean War.

Honourable senators, we have lost a distinguished Canadian and parliamentarian. Above all, he was a loving husband to his best friend and soulmate, the Honourable Heather Forster Smith, and he was a proud father and grandfather. To Heather and the family, we express our deepest condolences to you, and pray that you find comfort in the love and memories you shared with David. Please know that his legacy will never be forgotten and that he will always remain a part of our Senate family.

Honourable senators, please rise and join me in a moment of silence on behalf of our former colleague the Honourable David Smith.