An individual who was a prominent part of Calgary Flames and Canadian hockey history has passed away. Numerous media sources are reporting that Sonia Scurfield, a former co-owner of the Flames, has passed away after a battle with cancer. She was 89 years old.
Originally hailing from Hafford, Saskatchewan, Sonia attended the University of Saskatchewan and University of Manitoba. She met Ralph Scurfield while working in Edmonton and after they married in 1954 the pair settled in Calgary.
Ralph was one of the original ownership group – along with Nelson Scalbania (who soon sold), Harley Hotchkiss, Byron Seaman, Daryl Seaman, Norman Green and Norman Kwong – that bought the struggling Atlanta Flames and moved them to Calgary. When Ralph passed away after a heli-skiing accident in 1985, Sonia took over his ownership share. She remained part of the Flames until the ownership group was re-organized in 1994.
In addition to the prominence of the Flames themselves being part of her legacy, she had her name engraved on the Stanley Cup in 1989 as one of the team’s owners – she was the second female ever on the Cup and the first (and so far only) Canadian female to have her name immortalized.
Sad to report that Sonia Scurfield passed away tonight. She was the only Canadian woman to have her name engraved on the Stanley Cup in ‘89 with the @NHLFlames Her son Sergei says she passed peacefully after succumbing to cancer at 89-yrs old. I feel lucky to have met her pic.twitter.com/49Zg53Eo73
— Christine Simpson (@SNChrisSimpson) June 15, 2018
The Flames organization has released a statement regarding her passing:
“Sonia lived a life of devotion to her family and her community,” said Flames President & CEO Ken King. “The Scurfield family was an important part of bringing the NHL to our city and we will be eternally grateful. We will miss Sonia’s friendship, wisdom and support.”
