Roméo LeBlanc, former governor general, dies at 81

Roméo LeBlanc, the former governor general, died Wednesday morning in his home in southeastern New Brunswick after a lengthy illness. He was 81.

LeBlanc was the first Acadian to hold the post, serving from 1995 to 1999. A state funeral is planned for Memramcook, N.B., but there are no further details. 

LeBlanc was a longtime Liberal MP, cabinet minister and then senator before being named Canada's 25th governor general.

Before entering politics in 1967 as the press secretary to Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson, LeBlanc was a foreign correspondent with Radio-Canada.

His son, Liberal MP Dominic LeBlanc, now holds the Beauséjour riding his father once occupied. 

Dominic LeBlanc told CBC earlier this year how the family slowly came to terms with the fact the former governor general had Alzheimer's disease.

'He was a deeply committed Acadian, but he was motivated by living with the majority in a community spirit.' —Donald Savoie, University of Moncton For more on what people are saying

"When the doctors had to take away his driver's licence because it was unsafe for him and for others, I mean this is a big blow for somebody whose independence was important to him," Dominic LeBlanc said.

"And that was only three or four years ago when he had to stop driving."

In a statement, Prime Minister Stephen Harper said he was saddened to learn of LeBlanc's death and hailed him as a "passionate Canadian who served his country with distinction and honour."

"He profoundly believed Canadians should know more about their own extraordinary, everyday courage," the prime minister said.

Gov. Gen. Michaëlle Jean expressed her condolences to LeBlanc's family and praised him as "a man known for his simplicity, his serenity and his generosity."

"He carried in him a love of the French language, in particular the accents, colours and rhythms of his Acadian roots, where he took his last breath, facing the ocean that cradled him in his youth," Jean said Wednesday in a statement.

'Deeply committed Acadian'

In an interview with CBC News, Liberal MP Justin Trudeau described the close bond that LeBlanc had with his father, former prime minister Pierre Trudeau.

"Roméo was one of the rare, real friends to my father ... and that is something that I knew both of them held in high value throughout their lives, the close personal friendship that they had," Trudeau said.

"The real connection was the genuine closeness and belief in Canadians. Roméo was someone who was always willing to take the time to chat with people, to listen to them to share with them, to connect on a real personal level."

Trudeau said he's sent a note to Dominic LeBlanc, who once babysat the Trudeau children, on Wednesday expressing his thoughts on the former governor general's death.

Trudeau said he understands the grief that LeBlanc and the family are dealing with now, but he said the overwhelming reaction from Canadians will help soften the blow.

"The love that is pouring in from communities across this country, particularly in New Brunswick and Maritime provinces, but the love that is pouring in, the memories, the tributes, the good wishes going out to his children will make it easier to go through what will be a very difficult couple of weeks," Trudeau said.

Donald Savoie, a public policy specialist at the University of Moncton and a friend of the late governor general, described Roméo LeBlanc as "unpretentious" and a "good man."

"He was a deeply committed Acadian, but he was motivated by living with the majority in a community spirit," Savoie said.

"He was not one to be isolated. He fought the separatists, tooth and nail. He was a deeply committed federalist. He was a deeply committed Canadian. He believed profoundly that English Canada and French Canada could work together, that was part of who he was."

Savoie said LeBlanc never expected to become governor general. Yet, as the first person from Atlantic Canada and the first Acadian to be appointed to the position, he felt it was his duty to serve his country.

"I look upon Roméo as a politician, that kind we should have now," Savoie said.

"He was in there for the public good, for the public interest. He was not there for his own interest. He had a purpose. He knew when he went into politics that he would help small communities, people who had to struggle. He was going to deal with poverty, he was driven by that. He wasn't driven by self-interest, by ego. He was driven by a sense of purpose of doing good."

New Brunswick Premier Shawn Graham issued a statement Wednesday afternoon, praising LeBlanc's lifelong commitment to Acadians and to New Brunswick.

"Mr. LeBlanc was a seminal figure in the Acadian renaissance and a senior voice for New Brunswickers of all backgrounds throughout Canada and the world," Graham said.

From journalism to politics in 1967

LeBlanc left his career as a foreign journalist in 1967 to serve as Pearson's press secretary.

"When Mr. Pearson asked me to come and work for him as press secretary I didn't find a very good reason to say no," LeBlanc said later.

He stayed on as press secretary to Trudeau.

In 1972, LeBlanc decided to join Trudeau in the House of Commons by being elected in the riding of Westmorland-Kent as a Liberal MP. Trudeau appointed LeBlanc to cabinet as the minister of fisheries and oceans in 1974.

LeBlanc turned out to be a natural for the fisheries portfolio, a cabinet position he kept for eight years. His tenure in that portfolio earned him the distinction of being the longest-serving fisheries minister in Canadian history.

LeBlanc praised by MFU

It was during the 1970s that Gilles Thériault worked to form the Maritime Fishermen's Union, an association to help inshore fishermen make a decent living.

Thériault said LeBlanc spent his career as minister speaking out for small fishermen.

LeBlanc helped the association pay for trips to see what was going on in Newfoundland and Labrador and Canada's west coast. Thériault said the fisheries minister made sure the MFU was part of government committees, advisory boards and foreign trips.

"You know, whether we were negotiating a bilateral agreement with Japan or [the] U.S.S.R. or the European countries, the MFU had its place there because he felt you are a part of the industry and you know it shouldn't always be the big boys that are surrounding my officials," Thériault said.

One of his most notable successes was helping to extend Canada's territorial fishing boundary from 22 kilometres to 370 kilometres to protect fish stocks.

Appointed governor general in 1995

Trudeau appointed LeBlanc to the Senate in 1984.

In 1995, Prime Minister Jean Chrétien, a former cabinet colleague, called LeBlanc with another job offer. This time LeBlanc was to serve as governor general.

Among LeBlanc's first decisions was to reopen the grounds and the residence at Rideau Hall to the public. It is estimated that 125,000 people now visit the home of the governor general each year.

LeBlanc created the Governor General's Caring Canadian Award to recognize the dedication of ordinary people who have made extraordinary contributions.

John Leadbetter has one of those awards with LeBlanc's signature at the bottom on his living room wall.

Leadbetter is also known in Moncton, N.B., as J.J. the Clown, a Shriner who's been visiting children and patients at the hospital for almost a quarter of a century.

"[He] made me feel very proud," he said.