UCC Extends Condolences On The Death Of The Right Honourable Ramon J Hnatyshyn

(Ukrainian Canadian Congress) The Right Honourable Ramon J Hnatyshyn PC, CC, CMM, CD, QC was an outstanding Canadian. He exemplified the fact that by hard work, perseverance and dedication, every Canadian, regardless of ethnicity, could reach the highest levels of civic and professional life. This is the promise and the reality of Canadian multiculturalism.

Mr Hnatyshyn acknowledged and prided himself on his Ukrainian heritage. His father, the late Senator John Hnatyshyn and his mother Helen, were bastions of the Ukrainian Canadian community in Saskatchewan. As a member of the Federal Cabinet, Ramon Hnatyshyn was always ready to assist the community.

Mr Hnatyshyn referred to his Ukrainian heritage at the ceremony when he became Governor-General. As Governor-General he paid an official visit to Ukraine – the first western leader to do so after Ukraine’s independence in 1991 – and made a point of travelling to the village in which his father had been born. After leaving public life, Mr Hnatyshyn maintained his interest in Ukraine and Ukrainian Canadian community life. Most recently, he had agreed to act as Patron of the Chair of Ukrainian Studies at the University of Ottawa.

"Canada and its Ukrainian Canadian community have lost a great leader," stated Eugene Czolij, President of the Ukrainian Canadian Congress. "Mr Hnatyshyn’s commitment to our country and his love of his heritage serve as examples to us all. On behalf of the UCC, I extend our deepest condolences to Mrs Gerda Hnatyshyn and to all the family. May the memory of Ramon Hnatyshyn be among us forever."