I've lived in Winnipeg since 1946 when, fresh out of high school, I came to seek my fortune. The city with its hustle and bustle, its excitement and opportunities held a special attraction for me. I was sure I would get a wonderful job and have a wonderful time with wonderful friends. Now, as I look back on the past fifty years, I realize how fortunate I've been to have lived my life with good friends and a loving family here in this clean, safe, comfortable community.

Is there something special about this city I call home? The answer is an emphatic 'yes', because there is no other major city for hundreds of kilometres in any direction. Winnipeg has become the liveliest, the most culturally rich, the most stimulating city that a population of a little over 600,000 can make it. Winnipeg has developed a social and cultural life normally found only in much larger centres, and the community spirit, hospitality and friendliness usually found only in much smaller ones.

Has my Winnipeg changed over the years? When I first moved here, Portage Avenue downtown was the heart of the city. We were proud of the corner of Portage and Main, reputed to be the windiest on earth. Friends met and walked along this widest of avenues. We went to the movies at the Capitol, the Metropolitan, or Gaiety Theatres. Sometimes we met in front of the Timothy Eaton statue in Eaton's store, said to take in half of all the retail money spent in downtown Winnipeg. Now, numerous shopping malls have taken shoppers out to the suburbs. Large theatres are closed as people stay home to watch television. Pedestrian traffic is no longer allowed on our famous windy corner. This is what we call progress.

Is Winnipeg a winter city? If it is, we celebrate the season. We hold hockey tournaments and curling bonspiels and our community clubs hold winter carnivals. In February, we flock to Le Festival du Voyageur in St. Boniface for a week-long celebration of the men who paddled the fur-trade canoes and opened up the west. We enjoy snow sculptures, sports tournaments, dog-sled rides, a parade, and French-Canadian cuisine. Only winter cities can appreciate how the whiteness of winter leads to brightness of days. Winnipeg boasts a daily average of six hours of bright sunshine.

How do we cope with the cold? We have a perverse pride in our ability to endure blizzards, icy wind blasts, and freezing temperatures. Winter is serious business and only a hardy people can brave the face-numbing prairie winds, the icy black sidewalks, the dirty piles of snow and salt-covered streets. If a fog of ice crystals forms in the atmosphere, we look at the sun dogs and marvel at the beauty of the rainbows in them. Snowfalls are terrific for skiers, snowshoers, snowmobilers and kids on toboggans. We know enough to dress warmly. Even though they rumple our hair, we wear toques so we don't freeze our ears, and cheerfully call ourselves "toque-heads". It is seldom too cold, too snowy, too windy or too icy to go outside. We enjoy living, working and playing in this city we unapologetically call 'Winterpeg'.

What about summer? To Winnipeggers the word "glorious" is synonymous with summer. Vivid blue skies, brilliant sunshine, and wide-open spaces make this season truly special. There are unending activities for every member of the family. Neighbourhood and community festivals are continuous and popular events. we celebrate our multicultural heritage with Folklorama, a festival of nations that takes pavilion-goers on a tour of the world without ever leaving the city. We have an abundance of parks, and something is always happening in our wonderful Winnipeg summers.

Why do we take our city for granted? We hardly ever stop to think about how great things are here. There's very little pollution and no smog. A clean city, with tree-lined residential streets, it's still safe to go outside in the evening. Our licence plates say "Friendly Manitoba" and nothing could better describe us.

What is the main reason Winnipeg is such a great place to live? It's the people whose skills and talents, ingenuity and entrepreneurship, have shaped the character of the city. We welcome large numbers of immigrants from all over the globe, creating an ethnic diversity. We preserve and share our cultures. We band together to accomplish whatever has to be done. We respond to adversity by being resourceful. It's the spirit of Winnipeggers that makes me proud to live here.