The king’s representative to Canada is in Alberta on his first official visit to the province.

Governor General Mary Simon will spend five days in the province, meeting with local leaders and raising awareness of a variety of issues affecting Canadians.

Simon began his tour at 4 Wing Cold Lake fighter base in honor of the Royal Canadian Air Force’s centennial, where he and his wife, Whit Fraser, were welcomed with a brief ceremony.

The duo then visited the Cold Lake First Nation school to meet the children, staff and Elders.

Indigenous language revitalization and preservation are among the topics Simon plans to address during his visit. In addition to raising awareness, it will recognize many Albertans for their service to their communities.

On Saturday, the governor general visited Jasper National Park to meet with the community and see firsthand the remarkable efforts made by many in the community to help the town recover from the wildfire.

“This is to show our support and the contributions that I think we’re trying to make to make sure people feel like they’re getting their lives back together and addressing the real issues they’re facing,” Simon said.

Simon will spend most of his visit to Alberta in the capital region and on Sunday met with members of the C5 North East Community Centre, a group of five social service agencies in Clareview.

There she took an African dance class and made soup and Bannock for the community.

Governor General Mary Simon meets with community members at the C5 Northeast Community Center in Edmonton on October 27, 2024. (Adel Ahmed/CTV News Edmonton)“It’s been very inspiring to see organizations coming together… people working together to solve problems that individuals face,” Simon told media at the community center on Sunday.

He said his visit to Alberta “provided me with a real opportunity to get to know the people who live in their region and the challenges they face.”

On Monday, Simon is scheduled to visit MacEwan University for a fireside chat and panel discussion on the impact of online harassment and online safety.

Later that day, he will attend a luncheon on economic reconciliation at Government House before inducting seven Albertans into the Order of Canada.

Simon will wrap up his trip on Tuesday with a visit to the Alberta legislature and a meeting with Premier Danielle Smith and Indigenous leaders.

With files from CTV News Edmonton’s Jeremy Thompson and Adel Ahmed