18 Facts About Ray Hnatyshyn

Ramon John Hnatyshyn was a Canadian lawyer and statesman who served as the 24th governor general of Canada from 1990 to 1995.

Ray Hnatyshyn was born and educated in Saskatchewan and served in the Royal Canadian Air Force prior to being elected to the House of Commons in 1974.

On June 4,1979, Ray Hnatyshyn was sworn into the Queen's Privy Council for Canada and served as a minister of the Crown in two non-successive governments until 1988.

Ray Hnatyshyn replaced Jeanne Mathilde Sauve as viceroy, and occupied the post until succeeded by Romeo LeBlanc in 1995.

Ray Hnatyshyn subsequently practiced law and sat as Chancellor of Carleton University before dying of pancreatitis on December 18,2002.

Ray Hnatyshyn, a Ukrainian Canadian, was born in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, to Helen and John Ray Hnatyshyn.

Ray Hnatyshyn attended Victoria Public School and Nutana Collegiate Institute in Saskatoon, then went on to study at the University of Saskatchewan, earning a Bachelor of Arts in 1954, and a Bachelor of Laws two years later.

Ray Hnatyshyn was called to the bar of Saskatchewan in 1957 and briefly worked at a Saskatoon law firm, then moved to Ottawa in 1958 to take a position as an assistant to Walter Aseltine, the Government Leader in the Canadian Senate.

Ray Hnatyshyn returned to Saskatoon in 1960 and resumed his career as a lawyer.

Ray Hnatyshyn was enlisted as a reservist with the Royal Canadian Air Force from 1951 to 1956, then served in the RCAF's 23 Wing from 1956 to 1958.

Ray Hnatyshyn was appointed the PCs' deputy house leader in 1976.

Ray Hnatyshyn was re-elected MP in Saskatoon West, and was named opposition critic for justice.

The PCs won a landslide majority government in the 1984 federal election, and Ray Hnatyshyn was named Government House Leader in November 1984, before adding President of the Privy Council to his portfolio in February 1985.

Ray Hnatyshyn was called to the bar of Ontario the same year, and was appointed Queen's Counsel in Canada in 1988.

Ray Hnatyshyn was sworn in during a ceremony in the Senate chamber on January 29,1990.

In 1991, Ray Hnatyshyn staged on the grounds the first of the annual Governor General's Summer Concert Series and, the year after, mounted His Excellency's Most Excellent Rock Concert and re-opened the skating rink to the public.

Further, Ray Hnatyshyn undertook a number of state visits, including one to Ukraine, before his time serving at Her Majesty's pleasure ended on February 6,1995.

Per tradition, and with the consent of his family, Ray Hnatyshyn lay in state for two days in the Senate chamber.