'You can't put a price on memories': Regina's Shumiatcher residence listed for sale
The "Shumiatcher residence," located on the corner of College Avenue and McIntyre Street, has been listed for sale.
The property is located at 2520 College Ave. Originally built as two separate houses 3ft apart, one home in 1911 and the other in 1920, amalgamated into one by the Shumiatchers in the early 80’s.
“[The main home] was purchased in the 50’s,” said real estate agent Murray Dollard. “When the property came up on the corner, the Shumiatchers bought that. They combined the two together and had two living quarters.”
The Shumiatchers were prominent members of the Regina community for decades.
Morris and Jacqueline “Jacqui” Shumiatcher were supporters the arts, notably of the Norman MacKenzie Art Gallery, Globe Theatre, and the Regina Symphony Orchestra. They also supported numerous individual artists and students through scholarships.
Jacqui was appointed to the Order of Canada in 2017 and received the Saskatchewan Order of Merit in 2001.
Morris Shumiatcher passed away in 2004 and Jacqui in February of 2021.
“They were just great people,” lifelong friend Noela Bamford told CTV News. “They had a lot to give to the community.”
Bamford rented what is known as ‘second home’ from the Shumiatchers before the combination. She credited herself with the idea to build the current go-between walkway to connect the homes when the original plan was to connect through a closet wall.
“But on the other side, they had Inuit carvings and they would have had to destroy the wall that displayed a lot of them in the bigger house,” she recalled.
The Regina heritage book said ‘main home’ was one of the first constructed on the street. The structure itself is straight out of a storybook.
“You have a shaped roof that is rolled, you just don’t see that anymore,” said Dollard. “Some of the stained glass in here is from the 1800’s.”
Scaling over 4,000 square feet, each room has its own identity.
“Main home is a two storey with grand front entry, impressive living room with ceiling beams, Tyndal stone fireplace, tile flooring, wall bench overlooking front yard and a wall of shelving and cabinets,” the listing outlined. “Beautiful dining room with ceiling beams, loads of storage and a gorgeous window overlooking the backyard.”
Three wood fireplaces exist, although central heating and cooling has been retrofitted into the property.
“Second home is a bungalow with loads of character. Enter into the beautiful living room with brick fireplace and impressive built-in shelving. Bright sun room off living area,” the listed described.
Shelves that once held sculptures from around the world and walls with paintings hung on every inch possible are now bare. Rooms that hosted princes, governors and numerous dinner parties of distinguished guests, now empty.
But for Bamford, it is the little moments she remembers best.
“We would always help clean up after her dinner parties,” she said. “We would spend more time at the sink just looking out the window. It was wonderful.”
The home is listed for $1.295 million. But the friendship created in it is invaluable, according to Bamford.
“I feel really privileged having been a part of their lives,” she said. “They were such great friends. I really, really miss her.
“You can’t put a price on memories. To me, there no monetary value I could put on the friendship I had with Jacqui and Shumy,” she added.
Advocates for the property have been attempting to grant the home heritage status.
The property has been on the Heritage Regina Holding Bylaw list since 1989.
Correction
This story previously stated the Shumiatcher residence is a Regina heritage property, which is incorrect. The property has been on the Regina Heritage Holding Bylaw List since 1989.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
'Anything to win': Trudeau says as Poilievre defends meeting protesters
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is accusing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre of welcoming 'the support of conspiracy theorists and extremists,' after the Conservative leader was photographed meeting with protesters, which his office has defended.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Boeing's financial woes continue, while families of crash victims urge U.S. to prosecute the company
Boeing said Wednesday that it lost US$355 million on falling revenue in the first quarter, another sign of the crisis gripping the aircraft manufacturer as it faces increasing scrutiny over the safety of its planes and accusations of shoddy work from a growing number of whistleblowers.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Fair in Ontario, flurries in Labrador: Weather systems make for an erratic spring
"It's a bit of a complicated pattern; we've got a lot going on," said Jennifer Smith of the Meteorological Service of Canada in an interview with CTVNews.ca on Wednesday. "[As is] typical with weather, all of these things are related."
Police tangle with students in Texas and California as wave of campus protest against Gaza war grows
Police tangled with student demonstrators in Texas and California while new encampments sprouted Wednesday at Harvard and other colleges as school leaders sought ways to defuse a growing wave of pro-Palestinian protests.