February 15th is the National Flag of Canada Day. For the occasion, the Senator Tony Loffreda wrote about his attachment to the red maple leaf and shares an anecdote about his childhood and the 1972 Summit Series. It’s a fun and light piece in honour of our flag’s 59th birthday.
97 years: that’s the time it took Canada to officially adopt its national flag. Our nation, as we know it today, was born in 1867 and yet, it took Parliament nearly a century to adopt our flag. It was in 1960 that Lester B. Pearson, then Leader of the Opposition, publicly called for a resolution to what was then known as “the flag problem.” When Pearson became Prime Minister in 1963, he promised Canadians that we would have our new flag by our 100th birthday, one that would be uniquely Canadian and exclusively ours.
After much debate, a lot of disagreement, and thousands of submissions, Parliament’s 15-member “flag committee” shortlisted three finalists including a concept proposed by Pearson himself. In the end, the parliamentary committee opted for George Stanley’s single maple leaf concept, and just before the Holidays in 1964, the House of Commons and the Senate adopted the design. Not long after, our new flag was raised on the Peace Tower on Parliament Hill for the very first time. It was February 15th, 1965.
In 2024, it’s hard to believe that 75% of Canadians have never known any other flag. They were born under the red maple leaf. Although I was a two-year-old toddler when the flag debate concluded, my attachment to the flag runs deep. Canada, represented by the flag, has given my family and I a great life. I still pinch myself when I walk up the Hill in Ottawa and look up at the flag. Serving as a Canadian Senator is the privilege of a lifetime and I do not take this work lightly.
My love affair with the maple leaf (not the Toronto Maple Leafs!) goes back many decades and one of my fondest memories brings me all the way back to September 1972.
I had just turned 10 years old and spent the greater part of the summer playing with friends and enjoying quality time with my family. Going back to school that year coincided with a major international event in Montreal.
It was on September 2nd, at the iconic Montreal Forum, a few blocks from my childhood home, that the puck was first dropped on the 1972 Summit Series. As an avid hockey enthusiast, the Summit Series was the ultimate sporting event: two hockey superpowers facing each other in an eight-game series with games in Canada and the Soviet Union. There were no medals, no trophy, and no cash prize – it was all about bragging rights and claiming the title of best in class!
What a disappointment, however, when our Canadian squad fell 7 to 3 to the Soviets at the Forum. Thankfully, two days later in Toronto, Esposito, Cournoyer and the Mahovlich brothers found the back of the net and tied the series 1-1.
When the Series moved to Moscow, Canada was trailing behind the Soviets. We lost game five but came back roaring in games six and seven. The Series was tied. Game 8, on September 28th, would crown the winner.
For the occasion, my entire school at Sainte-Rita’s was gathered in the school gym to watch the game live on a small black and white television.
I remember it like it was yesterday: the excitement, the hype, the pressure, and the pride in watching Canada’s best, adorning the maple leaf on their sweaters, as they represented us on the world stage.
After forty minutes, Canada was trailing 5-3. Our boys only had twenty minutes left.
During the second intermission, I still recall telling all my friends not to worry. I was convinced Canada would come back in the third and win. I was so confident that one of best friends and I did a friendly wager. We bet a quarter (my bus fare home). I was determined to keep the gym moral positive.
Two minutes into the third period, Esposito made it 5-4. With seven minutes left, one of my childhood idols, Yvan Cournoyer, tied it, and we all know what happened with 34 seconds left in the game: Paul Henderson – the goal of the century!
The entire gym rose to its feet. We cheered. We hugged. We cried. We proudly waved our small Canadian flags. To top it all off, I also pocketed an extra quarter that afternoon.
People were in the streets celebrating, waving their flags, and singing the anthem. For days and weeks, that feeling of pride intoxicated me. In fact, that pride in our nation, represented by that maple leaf, has never left me. It’s with fond memories and an unwavering feeling of pride and belonging that I look back on this unforgettable moment in my life. At the heart of this episode was Canada’s flag which turned 59 years old just a few weeks ago.
The Honourable Tony Loffreda, Independent Canadian Senator (Québec)