Paul Wynnyk

Lieutenant General Paul Francis Wynnyk, (born June 29, 1964) is a former Canadian Army officer who served from 2016 to 2018 as Commander of the Canadian Army. On July 16, 2018, he was named Vice Chief of the Defence Staff, until his resignation and retirement in July 2019.

Personal life Paul Wynnyk is of Ukrainian descent, the grandson of emigrants in Alberta 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.

He's married to Marianne and has two sons. His late father, Walter Wynnyk, served as both his high-school principal and the commanding officer of his army cadet corps unit.

Military career Wynnyk attended Royal Roads Military College and the Royal Military College of Canada, and he was commissioned into the Canadian Military Engineers in 1986. He became commanding officer of 1 Combat Engineer Regiment in Edmonton in 1997, commander of 1 Area Support Group in 2004 and Assistant Commanding General at the Combined Security Transition Command – Afghanistan in March 2009. 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, to army cadet, to reservist, to regular officer," he said. About his late father Walter, Wynnyk said, "As both my high school principal and the commanding officer of my army cadet corps, it was he who encouraged me to embark upon a career of military service.

In July 2019, Wynnyk resigned as Vice Chief of the Defence Staff after he claimed that Chief of the Defence Staff General Jonathan Vance 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:

Appointed Commander (CMM) on 26 September 2013 Appointed Officer (OMM) on 21 September 2006

1 Rotation Bars Special Service Medal

MONUC / MONUSCO Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal Decoration awarded in 2012

Grand Officer level

Officer level