Sheila Shotton was a breath of fresh air in more ways than one.
For more than 20 years she worked as a freelance producer and interviewer on CBC Radio. She is best remembered as a regular contributor to the weekend show Fresh Air. She did her own research, and her interviews with authors, actors, artists and playwrights were in depth, interesting and lots of fun. Sheila was also a contributor to This Country in the Morning, hosted by the late Peter Gzowski.
Sheila was born in Vancouver but her family moved to the Southwestern Ontario town of Leamington where her father Allison, a family doctor, established a medical practice. Her mother Evelyn promoted the move to be closer to her family in Ontario and Quebec.
When she was 17, Sheila - prompted by her parents - came to Toronto and enrolled as a boarder at Bishop Strachan School. She loved both the school and the city, and when she finished her education she settled in Toronto. She worked at several jobs before she joined CBC Radio.
While she never attended university she was a voracious reader of history and fiction. She visited a nearby library every couple of weeks and came out with a bag of books. Her passion for the arts was evident in both her professional work and her recreation. She cherished Canadian art and bought many pieces.
Sheila was very close to her older sister Margaret and to her nephew Robert and nieces Andrea and Christina. She also cherished her pals and saw them on a regular basis. She kept busy as a member of many organizations - The Toronto Friends of the Visual Arts, The Heliconian Club, the Granite Club and the Toronto Hunt, where she took up golfing. She never paid much attention to her score. Golf in her life was simply another way to have fun with friends and a good lunch after the game.
When Sheila was in her 20s she spent a year living in Paris. That experience triggered her love for travel and she scoured the United States, Europe and parts of Africa and Asia.
In 1987, Sheila married broadcast journalist Larry Stout. They met while they were both working at the CBC.
Five years ago, Sheila was diagnosed with cancer. It was treated and never bothered her until it returned with a vengeance.
Last October, we flew to New York to visit friends and enjoy the theatre, the museums and the ambience. Two months after that visit, as we sat in bed at home with my arms around her, she sighed softly and passed away. In typical style she had prepared for her death, including a request to have the congregation sing Lord of the Dance at the funeral.
They did it with gusto.
Larry Stout is Sheila's husband.