Canadian & U.S. Dignitaries Speak at Monroe Rotary

On February 1, 2011, Rotarians and guests opened the regular meeting of The Rotary Club of Monroe by singing the national anthems of Canada and the United States.

Recognizing Rotary as a meeting place for community leaders, Canadian Consul General Dr. Roy Norton selected Monroe Rotary to speak on behalf of the Canadian government's support for, and promotion of the proposed Detroit River International Crossing (DRIC) project.   Dr. Norton presented a history of the current crossing, an overview of the DRIC proposal with commentary concerning the interdependence of the US and Canadian economies and the synergy of the trading partnership, and the Canadian government's position on the project.  Numerous Michigan, MonroeCounty and local government officials and area business leaders attend the informative and well-received presentation.  Consul General Norton answered several questions from the audience following his presentation and after the meeting.

In an interesting, if unintended, twist of history, the first superintendent of Monroe County's River Raisin Battlefield National Park, Scott J. Bentley, was welcomed to Monroe and introduced to the audience.  In their respective addresses, both Norton and Bentley spoke movingly about the nearly two centuries of friendship, cooperation and goodwill between the nations.  The RiverRaisinNationalBattlefieldPark is the newest US National Park, and was the site of one of the most intense battles of US troops - primarily militia from Kentucky and Michigan - against British, Canadian Militia and Native American forces, for control of the Great Lakes and North America in the War of 1812.

Since 1814, the US and Canada have shared almost 200 years of peace and freedom, and have stood together as two of the world's strongest economic and military allies.