Episode 55: Lt.-Gen. Christine Whitecross (ret'd)
Lieutenant-General (Retired) Chris Whitecross enrolled in the Canadian Forces in 1982, joining the Canadian Military Engineers. Successive postings have taken her from Germany to almost every province in Canada, notably to undertake a range of staff duties such as those of A4 Airfield Engineering Operations at 1 Canadian Air Division, Winnipeg; Executive Assistant to the Chief of the Air Staff at National Defence Headquarters, Ottawa; Director of Infrastructure and Environment Corporate Services for the Assistant Deputy Minister (Infrastructure and Environment); Joint Engineer, Canada Command; and Chief of Staff for Assistant Deputy Minister (Infrastructure and Environment).
Lieutenant-General Whitecross has also performed the duties of G1/G4 for the Force Engineers of the United Nations Protection Force (Yugoslavia) while deployed to the Former Republic of Yugoslavia; Wing Construction Engineering Officer, Greenwood; Commanding Officer, 1 Construction Engineering Unit, Moncton; Commander, Joint Task Force (North), Yellowknife; Deputy Commander, Canadian Operational Support Command, Ottawa; Deputy DCOS Communications, ISAF HQ, Kabul, Afghanistan; and Canadian Armed Forces Chief Military Engineer at National Defence Headquarters, Ottawa.
Lieutenant-General Whitecross has a Bachelor in Chemical Engineering from Queen's University and a Masters in Defence Studies from the Royal Military College of Canada. She is also a graduate of the Advanced Military Studies Course and the Command and Staff Course, both conducted at the Canadian Forces College. Awarded the Order of Military Merit at the level of Commander (CMM), she was also presented with the United States Defense Meritorious Service Medal (United States) for her service at ISAF HQ, and the Canadian Meritorious Service Medal for her service as the International Military Sports Council (CISM) Secretary General. Lieutenant-General Whitecross was named one of Canada's Top 100 Most Powerful Women of 2011 and then again in 2016, and she is the 2018 recipient of the CDAI Vimy Award. Also in 2018, the Canadian Prime Minister appointed her as a member of the G7 Gender Council during Canada’s G7 Presidency.
In February 2015, Lieutenant-General Whitecross was appointed Commander of the Canadian Forces Strategic Response Team on Sexual Misconduct, and assumed the duties as Commander, Military Personnel Command in June 2015 upon promotion to Lieutenant- General. In November 2016, Lieutenant-General Whitecross was appointed Commandant of the NATO Defense College in Rome, Italy. She retired in December 2020.
In retirement, Lieutenant-General Whitecross is committed to help develop and mentor future Canadian and Military leaders. She was appointed the first Senior Mentor for the Athena Network of the Royal Military College of Canada, and is active in offering personal mentoring to a number of junior and senior leaders.
