Lieutenant General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on th ...

Paul Francis Wynnyk, (born June 29, 1964) is a former

Canadian Army The Canadian Army (french: Armée canadienne) is the command responsible for the operational readiness of the conventional ground forces of the Canadian Armed Forces. It maintains regular forces units at bases across Canada, and is also respo ...

officer who served from 2016 to 2018 as

Commander of the Canadian Army The commander of the Canadian Army (french: commandant de l'Armée canadienne) is the institutional head of the Canadian Army. This appointment also includes the title Chief of the Army Staff (french: links=no, chef de l'état-major de l'Armée) ...

. On July 16, 2018, he was named Vice Chief of the Defence Staff, until his resignation and retirement in July 2019.

Early life

Paul Wynnyk is of

Ukrainian Ukrainian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Ukraine * Something relating to Ukrainians, an East Slavic people from Eastern Europe * Something relating to demographics of Ukraine in terms of demography and population of Ukraine * So ...

descent, the grandson of emigrants in

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest T ...

from Radvantsi, Lviv region, in Western Ukraine. He was born in Edmonton on June 29, 1964, and was raised in the village of

Breton, Alberta Breton is a village in central Alberta, Canada. It is located roughly southwest of Edmonton. History Originally called Keystone, it was established in 1909 by a group of African-American immigrants as a block settlement. The new Black Can ...

Military career

Wynnyk attended

Royal Roads Military College Royal Roads Military College (RRMC) was a Canadian military college from 1940 to 1995, located in Hatley Park, Colwood, British Columbia, near Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. The facility now serves as the campus of Royal Roads University, a ...

and the

Royal Military College of Canada '') , established = 1876 , type = Military academy , chancellor = Anita Anand ('' la, ex officio, label=none'' as Defence Minister) , principal = Harry Kowal , head_label ...

, and he was commissioned into the

Canadian Military Engineers The Canadian Military Engineers (CME; french: links=no, Génie militaire canadien) is the military engineering personnel branch of the Canadian Armed Forces. The members of the branch that wear army uniform comprise the Corps of Royal Canadian Engi ...

in 1986. He became commanding officer of

1 Combat Engineer Regiment 1 Combat Engineer Regiment (1 CER, french: links=no, 1er Régiment du génie de combat) is a Regular Force regiment of the Royal Canadian Engineers (RCE) commanded by a lieutenant-colonel. Its headquarters is in the Patton Building at CFB Edmo ...

Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city an ...

in 1997, commander of 1 Area Support Group in 2004 and Assistant Commanding General at the

Combined Security Transition Command – Afghanistan The Combined Security Transition Command – Afghanistan (CSTC-A, pronounced "see stick-uh") was a multinational, U.S. led, military organization during the War in Afghanistan. As of 2019, the organization's missions are: * Budget, account, and ...

in March 2009. He went on to be commander of

Land Force Western Area Land Force Western Area (LFWA) was a formation of the Canadian Army responsible for operations in the Canadian provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia. LFWA was headquartered at CFB Edmonton. The command was formed in ...

in 2010, Deputy Commander of the Canadian Army in 2012 and Commander of the Canadian Forces Intelligence Command and Chief of Defence Intelligence in July 2014. In January 2016, it was announced that he would become Chief of the Army Staff and Commander of the Canadian Army. In his speech during the ceremony, Wynnyk gave credit to his parents for supporting him on the path to this point in his career. "My mom Joan, who is here today, has watched and supported my journey in uniform from

cub scout Cub Scouts, Cubs or Wolf Cubs are programs associated with Scouting for young children usually between 7 and 12, depending on the organization to which they belong. A participant in the program is called a Cub. A group of Cubs is called a 'P ...

, to army cadet, to

reservist A reservist is a person who is a member of a military reserve force. They are otherwise civilians, and in peacetime have careers outside the military. Reservists usually go for training on an annual basis to refresh their skills. This person is ...

, to regular officer," he said. About his late father Walter, Wynnyk said, "As both my high school principal and the

commanding officer The commanding officer (CO) or sometimes, if the incumbent is a general officer, commanding general (CG), is the officer in command of a military unit. The commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually given wide latitu ...

of my army cadet corps, it was he who encouraged me to embark upon a career of military service. On July 16, 2018, he was named Vice Chief of the Defence Staff. In July 2019, Wynnyk resigned as Vice Chief of the Defence Staff after he claimed that Chief of the Defence Staff General

Jonathan Vance General Jonathan Holbert Vance (born January 3, 1964) is a retired Canadian Forces officer who served as a general in the Canadian Army. Vance was the chief of the Defence Staff from 2015 to 2021. In July 2021, Vance was charged with one co ...

planned to replace him as the Vice-Chief of the Defence Staff with Vice-Admiral Mark Norman. Wynnyk then claimed these plans were reversed when Vice-Admiral Norman settled with the government and retired from the military. Wynnyk was the fifth vice-chief to serve under Vance.

Post-military career

In October 2019, Wynnyk was appointed as Deputy Minister of Municipal Affairs for the Government of Alberta and became Deputy Minister of Health in 2021.

Awards and decorations

Wynnyk's personal awards and decorations include the following:

CAN Order of Military Merit Commander and Officer

South-West Asia Service Medal with Afganistan bar ribbon

He was a qualified

Paratrooper A paratrooper is a military parachutist—someone trained to parachute into a military operation, and usually functioning as part of an airborne force. Military parachutists (troops) and parachutes were first used on a large scale during Worl ...

and as such wore the Canadian Forces Jump Wings with Red

Maple Leaf The maple leaf is the characteristic leaf of the maple tree. It is the most widely recognized national symbol of Canada. History of use in Canada By the early 1700s, the maple leaf had been adopted as an emblem by the French Canadians along th ...

Command Commendation

References

External links

, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Wynnyk, Paul Francis 1963 births Living people Canadian military personnel from Alberta Canadian generals Commanders of the Order of Military Merit (Canada) Recipients of the Meritorious Service Decoration Canadian people of Ukrainian descent Commanders of the Canadian Army Royal Military College of Canada alumni Royal Canadian Engineers officers Canadian military personnel of the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) 21st-century Canadian civil servants