Ray Hnatyshyn, Canadian lawyer and politician, 24th Governor General of Canada (d. 2002)
Ramon John Hnatyshyn (Ukrainian: Роман Іванович Гнатишин, Roman Ivanovych Hnatyshyn; ; March 16, 1934 – December 18, 2002) was a Canadian lawyer and statesman who served as governor general of Canada, the 24th since Canadian Confederation.
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, 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.
He was appointed governor general by Queen Elizabeth II in 1989, on the recommendation of Prime Minister Brian Mulroney. He replaced Jeanne Mathilde Sauvé as viceroy, and occupied the post until succeeded by Roméo LeBlanc in 1995. As the Queen's representative, Hnatyshyn proved to be a populist, reversing some exclusive policies of his predecessor, such as by opening up Rideau Hall to ordinary Canadians and tourists alike, and was praised for raising the stature of Ukrainian Canadians.
He subsequently practiced law and sat as Chancellor of Carleton University before dying of pancreatitis on December 18, 2002.