John Vintar

A serving Army officer, John Vintar has more than thirty years of Reserve and Regular Force service in the Canadian Armed Forces, with NATO or UN deployments to Bosnia, Sudan, South Sudan, and Mali. He was awarded two Command Commendations during these overseas missions – the first in 2006 for his actions in evacuating United Nations and civilian personnel during a firefight between rival factions in Sudan, and his second was awarded for his role in extracting United Nations peacekeepers forcibly detained by Opposition forces in South Sudan in 2015.

In addition to field experience with United Nations missions, he has been an instructor on the UN Military Expert on Mission course at the Peace Support Training Centre in Kingston, Canada. He has also lectured on the topic of contemporary peacekeeping in South Sudan at the University of Calgary, Mount Royal University, and the Royal Military College of Canada.

John has a life-long appreciation for history, folklore, literature, and storytelling. Educated in Canada and the United Kingdom, his master’s degree research explored elements of the oral traditions of Anglo-Saxon and Icelandic literature, genres which contain both strong literary and warrior elements. He developed an abiding interest in East African history, anthropology, and literature while preparing for his South Sudan deployment.

He and his wife Jacqueline live in Kingston, Ontario. Work, weather, and season permitting, they can be found on their boat Aqualibrium, exploring the scenic Thousand Islands.

John Vintar’s book will be available in 2023.