Marc Garneau, 1st Canadian astronaut in space, dead at age 76
CBC
Former astronaut and cabinet minister Marc Garneau has died. He was 76.
A statement from his wife, Pam Garneau, says he passed away peacefully after a short illness, surrounded by his family.
"Marc faced his final days with the same strength, clarity and grace that defined his life," the statement says.
She says the family is grateful for the outpouring of support, concern and kind words received over the past few days and also asks for privacy "as we grieve this profound loss and take time to reflect and heal."
Garneau was born on Dec. 23, 1949, in Quebec City. He studied engineering physics at the Royal Military College of Kingston, graduating in 1970, and he earned a doctorate in electrical engineering from the Imperial College of Science and Technology in London in 1973.
He then began his career by enlisting in the Canadian Navy, where he served from 1974 to 1983. After that, Garneau became the first Canadian to travel to space as part of a NASA mission in 1984.
After holding various positions at the Canadian Space Agency, he became its first vice-president, then its president, from late 2001 until 2005.
In 2008, he was elected as a Liberal in what was then the Quebec riding of Westmount–Ville-Marie. In 2013, ridings were redrawn, and he was elected to represent Notre-Dame-de-Grâce–Westmount.
He served as minister of transport in Justin Trudeau's government from 2015 to 2021, and then as minister of foreign affairs from January to October 2021. Garneau resigned from the House of Commons in March 2023.
On X Wednesday, Trudeau says he was in school in the early 1980s when he first met Garneau.
"I was in awe of his service and courage then, and continued to be so when I had the privilege of serving alongside him in Parliament and in government," says Trudeau.
"Throughout his life, Marc truly embodied and radiated the greatness of Canada."
Peter McQueen, a city councillor in Notre-Dame-de-Grâce (NDG), got to know Garneau over the years "and the more I got to know him, the more I liked him," he told CBC News Wednesday afternoon.
McQueen remembers how Garneau was known for showing up at community events and being involved on the local level, despite his busy life in Ottawa.
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