On Saturday, 9 September at Wanuskewin Heritage Park Huskie Athletics hosted an induction ceremony honouring those named to the Huskie Athletics Wall of Fame. Prime among those honoured was the late Bill Seymour who passed away in December, 2022. Former Huskie forward, assistant coach, interim head coach, and active alumnus, Bill’s indefatigable support for the Dogs was a staple for generations of Green and White hockey players, coaches, staff, and alumni.
The event allowed fellow athletes, alumni, University of Saskatchewan and Huskie Athletics staff, colleagues, family, and friends to celebrate the achievements of Bill as he was named to the Builder category of the Wall of Fame. A video tribute was presented and a table full of photographs, newspaper articles, and memorabilia from Bill’s years serving the Huskies was set up in the hall. Among those present were Bill’s wife Donna, his son Dean, and daughters Andrea and Shannon.
Although he was being honoured for his contributions to Huskie Athletics, Bill’s entire sporting life illustrated how committed he was to every athlete and team with which he was associated.
Born at Regina in 1943, Bill Seymour grew up in Fort Qu’Appelle where his interest in sports developed. After graduating from Fort Qu’Appelle High School he attended what was then the Regina Campus of University of Saskatchewan.
After moving to the Saskatoon campus in 1964, Bill played varsity football, where as a kicker/defensive back in 1965, he led the team in interceptions and was named a conference all-star. From 1964 to 1966 he also performed as a forward for the Huskie hockey team accumulating 22 points in only 20 games.
Upon graduation with a B.Ed., he taught in Yorkton where he also served as head coach for the city’s midget hockey team. Moving to Saskatoon in 1969, he taught and coached football, volleyball and track at Evan Hardy Collegiate until 1977. He was a committee member for the Canada Winter Games held in Saskatoon in 1971, and head coach for the Saskatoon Contacts AAA Midget team from 1974 to 1980. From 1979 to 1989, the sportsman teamed up with legendary NHL and Team Canada coach Dave King to operate the Seymour-King Hockey School where he was director. After his teaching career took him to Aden Bowman Collegiate in 1977, Seymour coached football and track until 1984 before moving to Walter Murray Collegiate (1984-91) where he continued to coach the same sports.
Recognizing his expertise in hockey, the Saskatchewan Hockey Association named Bill Seymour coaching director (1982-86). As assistant coach at his alma mater from 1982-87 and interim head coach for the 1990-91 season, the former Huskie forward was an integral part of the University of Saskatchewan’s only University Cup championship season in 1982-83.
Coach Seymour was behind the bench as head man for Team Saskatchewan at the 1983 and 1987 Canada Winter Games, Western Canadian Midget team vs Soviet Union in 1984, Team Western Midget team vs Soviets in 1985, and coached in China as part of an exchange programme in 1985. Although he earned a post-graduate diploma in 1977 and achieved his Level 6 Canadian Hockey Coaching Certification, the Saskatoon resident went beyond coaching with his many contributions to the sport he loved most. His achievements included being a member of the Memorial Cup Committee in 1989, University Cup Committee (1998-2000), hockey convenor for Canada West men’s hockey (1999-2006), education co-ordinator for Saskatoon Blades beginning in 2000, team education director for Team Canada Under-18 teams at Tarvisio, Italy (2003, Minsk, Belarus (2004), and Budejovice, Czech Republic in 2005.
He partnered with Michael P. J. Kennedy and provided invaluable research and promotion for Dogs on Ice: A History of Hockey at University of Saskatchewan which appeared in 2005 with a subsequent edition published in 2015. Without Bill’s steadfast work and unbridled enthusiasm for the project, there would not have been a Huskie hockey history book.
In 2006, University of Saskatchewan named Bill interim athletic director, a post he held for two years. The man who has given so much to the sporting community in which he has lived stepped up yet again to serve on the hosting committee for Memorial Cup in 2013, a member of the Home Ice Committee for fundraising for Merlis Belsher Place, director for the 4 Nations Cup (2018), and co-chaired SMAAAHL Showcase Tournament in 2019.
The many contributions made by Bill Seymour have been recognized with several awards beyond his place in Saskatchewan Sports Hall of Fame as a member of the 1983 Huskie University Cup team, including induction into the Saskatoon Sports Hall of Fame (2009), named Saskatoon Kinsmen “Sportsman of the Year,” Canadian Interuniversity Sport Joe Kane Award as Volunteer of the Year (2014), “Award of Recognition” from Huskie men’s hockey alumni and supporters (2014), and “Friend of the College of Kinesiology Award” (2022).
Now Bill’s decades-long contributions to Huskie Athletics, especially to the men’s hockey programme, have been recognized by his induction into the Wall of Fame. For those of us who have been his players, fellow alumni, colleagues, and friends, this honour is one that is so rightly deserved.
Photo by Electric Umbrella/Huskie Athletics
Written by MICHAEL P.J. KENNEDY, Ph.D.
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