Arquivo F 3 - Morris and Jacqui Shumiatcher fonds

Morris Cyril Shumiatcher was born in Calgary, Alberta on September 20, 1917 to Abraham and Luba (Lubinsky) Shumiatcher. He had one sibling: Minuetta. He received his primary and secondary education in Calgary and earned Bachelor of Arts (1940) and Bachelor of Laws (1941) degrees from the University of Alberta. Shumiatcher earned a Master of Laws degree from the University of Toronto in 1942 and obtained his Doctorate of Jurisprudence from that institution in 1945.

Shumiatcher was called to the Bars of Alberta and British Columbia in 1943. After serving with the Royal Canadian Air Force as an air-gunner (1943-1945), he was called to the Bar of Saskatchewan. Shumiatcher moved to Regina, Saskatchewan in 1945 and held numerous positions within the Saskatchewan Government, including legal counsel, policy adviser and personal advisor and assistant to Premier T.C. Douglas. While in these positions, he drafted many laws, including the Farm Security Act and the Trade Union Act, and authored the Saskatchewan Bill of Rights (1947).

In 1948, Shumiatcher was named King's Counsel and in 1949 he was called to the Bars of Manitoba and the North-West Territories. In 1949 he left the Saskatchewan government and entered private practice, specializing in labour, taxation and corporate law.

During his career, Shumiatcher lectured and wrote on a variety of subjects, including literature, the arts, philosophy, law, human rights and obligations, the monarchy, politics and international relations. He appeared regularly on television and radio including a daily radio program on current affairs, a television program entitled The World in Focus, and a national CTV lecture series entitled Civil Liberties and the Law. Shumiatcher was the author of three books: Welfare: The Hidden Backlash (1971); Assault on Freedom (1962) and Man of Law: A Model (1979).

Shumiatcher was a member of many provincial, national and international organizations, including the Canadian Bar Association; the International Bar Association; and the Law Society of Saskatchewan. He was also a patron and supporter of numerous cultural organizations, galleries, theatres and artists. He served on the boards of numerous organizations in Regina, including the Norman Mackenzie Art Gallery, the Regina Symphony and Saskatchewan Centre of the Arts. Shumiatcher served as the Honorary Counsul-General for Japan and as Dean of the Consular Corps for Saskatchewan.

Shumiatcher received numerous awards in recognition of his contributions, including the Order of the Sacred Treasure of Japan (1987); the Canadian Bar Association Distinguished Service Award (1995); and the Saskatchewan Award of Merit (1996). He was named an Officer of the Order of Canada in 1981.

Shumiatcher died in Regina on September 23, 2004.

Morris Shumiatcher married Jacqueline Fanchette Clotilde Clay on April 18, 1955.

Jacqueline Fanchette Clotilde Clay was born in April 1923 in Vendin-le-Vieil, Pas de Calais, France to Archibald Franklin and Rose Jeanne (Souillart) Clay. She moved with her family, including brother, Pierre, to Regina, Saskatchewan in 1927. She attended Kitchener School and Scott Collegiate. In 1940, she was employed as a shorthand and typing teacher at Sacred Heart Academy. She worked at several different jobs before joining the Government of Saskatchewan in 1947 to work in a secretarial position for Morris C. Shumiatcher, legal counsel to Premier T.C. Douglas. Jacqueline Clay married Morris C. Shumiatcher on April 18, 1955 in Toronto, Ontario. She later established Managerial Services Ltd. to support her husband's law office in Regina.

The Shumiatchers both supported numerous cultural organizations in Regina, including the MacKenzie Art Gallery; Regina Symphony Orchestra; and Globe Theatre. Jacqui Shumiatcher has had an extensive involvement with numerous cultural and women's organizations in Regina; she served as president of the Women's Canadian Club of Regina; the Regina Musical Club; the Regina Film Club and Phi Sigma Alpha - Saskatchewan Delta. She was chairman of the Legal Committee, Regina Council of Women; and served as a docent for the MacKenzie Art Gallery, lecturing to Regina school students on French Impressionism and Inuit art.

Shumiatcher has been the recipient of numerous awards, including a YWCA Women of Distinction award (1996); Canadian Women's Mentor Award (1999); the Saskatchewan Order of Merit (2001); an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from the University of Regina (2002); Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal (2003); CTV Citizen of the Year (2004); and Order of Canada (2017).

Shumiatcher died in Regina on February 1, 2021.

Archibald Franklin Clay was born on March 23, 1894 in Nottingham, England. He came to Canada in 1907 and worked on constructing the railway at Prince Albert, Saskatchewan. He enlisted in the 28th North-West Battalion and served in France during World War I. Clay married Rose Jeanne Souillart on April 17, 1919 in France. The Clays lived in Paris and northern France, where their two children, Pierre and Jacqueline, were born. In 1927, the Clay family came to Regina, Saskatchewan, where Archibald Clay was employed by the Canadian Bank of Commerce and the Imperial Bank of Commerce. He retired in 1963 and died in Regina on August 11, 1965.

Rose Jeanne Souillart Clay was born on December 16, 1896 in Bethune, France to Paul Alfred F.J. Souillart and Clotilde Souillart. Her siblings were Albertine, Renee, Paulette and Alfred. Rose Clay, a homemaker, enjoyed music and drama and was an active member of many organizations in Regina, including France Canada and L'Alliance Francaise. She died in Regina on August 5, 1986.

Pierre (Pat) Paul Franklin Clay was born on March 28, 1920. He attended Kitchener School in Regina and graduated from Scott Collegiate in 1938. Clay joined the Canadian Army on September 1, 1939 and served in the United Kingdom and Europe during World War II. On February 2, 1946, he married Elsie May Barr, a nurse from Regina, in South Lancing, England. He returned to Regina in April, 1946 and retired from active service. Clay attended the University of Manitoba, where he obtained a Bachelor of Commerce (Honours) Degree in 1950. After graduation, he and Elsie moved to Ottawa, Ontario, where he was employed at the National Research Council as a statistician until his retirement on March 22, 1985. He died in Ottawa on December 23, 2012.

See PA 565 for a complete biographical sketch of Jacqueline Clay Shumiatcher.