Mayor's Message Words cannot adequately express the happiness, pride and exhilaration I felt on the evening of Saturday, November 19th, 2005 at the Inaugural City of Pickering Mayor’s Gala. It was truly an affair to remember. In one magical evening, this event became the signature black-tie, social of the year. More importantly, the Mayor’s Gala raised over $100,000 for the community. A large portion of these funds went towards a rehabilitation room at the Rouge Valley Ajax-Pickering hospital dedicated in honour of our veterans. For this year’s Gala, I am pleased to announce that the majority of the proceeds will once again go towards the hospital. The hospital is one of our community’s most valuable assets. Any investment in the hospital is an investment to the future health and well-being of our community. For the remainder of the proceeds, I have already made a public pledge to donate $50,000 towards the future construction of the Durham West Arts Centre. As our city matures, it is clear that we need a permanent arts facility here in West Durham. The arts represent the very best ideals of man. They are windows to the soul, which enable us to unlock our imagination and find beauty or meaning in a myriad of different forms and expressions.  It is important to have a permanent arts facility close to home so that our community has a place to explore, imagine, reflect and communicate.  In addition, our local artists need a place to call home, take root and flourish. While we still have a long way to go, if we each commit to realizing this shared vision, the Durham West Arts Centre will become the cornerstone of Pickering’s arts and cultural landscape. I do hope you have an opportunity to attend the 2nd Annual City of Pickering Mayor’s Gala on November 25th. While you can be assured of having a wonderful time, you can also take a great deal of pride knowing that you will be supporting two very vital components of Pickering. Dave Ryan Mayor, City of Pickering