I was a rink rat at curling clubs in my pre-10 years of age years. She knew my parents, and I would be tagging along at the curling club. My memory isn’t spot on, but she would have acknowledged my tiny presence in some way.

I knew she was good at curling and was part of a team that won the Canadian women’s championship. I didn’t know of her accomplishments away from the curling rink.

I remember speaking with her when she was Lieutenant Governor of the province, the first woman to hold the post. What took the province so long to have a woman in the position is a question for another day.

I introduced myself as John Hutchinson’s son, so she could put me in perspective. She seemed to know a bit about my career, which was flattering.

We had a brief chat. It was memorable for a wide-eyed fan of hers who was now about 40 years old.

The reason I bring this up is because Saskatchewan author Merle Massie has written a biography, capturing, in 320 pages, the life of Ms. Fedoruk. The book is titled A Radiant Life: The Honourable Sylvia Fedoruk Scientist, Sports Icon, and Stateswoman.

The title has a lot of words, but summarizes her career as well as a book cover can.

I confess to not having read the book, so I can’t review it.

Massie’s is the first biography of Ms. Fedoruk. What took someone so long is a question for another day.

In a nutshell of a nutshell, Ms. Fedoruk was a pioneer in cancer research. She was the first female chancellor at the University of Saskatchewan, and, as mentioned she was the province’s first Lieutenant Governor. The curling championship previously mentioned? It was the first for Canadian women? Of course, it was.

In a piece Massie wrote to promote the book, she said during Ms. Fedoruk’s outing controversy, revealing a particular provincial touchpoint around issues of homosexuality, artistic activism, and power dynamics in the midst of the AIDS crisis of the 1990s.”

“Known for a warm but no-nonsense style, Ms. Fedoruk built a legacy which drew Saskatchewan’s north into the provincial consciousness, advocated for equal education for all, pushed for support for women in science, technology, engineering, and math, and worked tirelessly as the University of Saskatchewan and the province’s most vocal cheerleader.”

Being awarded the Order of Canada, being inducted into the Curling Hall of Fame, being inducted into the Canadian Medical Hall of Fame and having a school named after her in Saskatoon are other additions to a seemingly endless list of honours.

Ms. Fedoruk was born in 1927 and left us in 2012. The book, published by the University of Regina Press, is sure to be available at your favourite bookstore, as well as Amazon.

-Cam Hutchinson