Naomi Maxfield Shumway (October 3, 1922 – May 22, 2004 ) was the sixth general president of the

Primary Primary or primaries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups and labels * Primary (band), from Australia * Primary (musician), hip hop musician and record producer from South Korea * Primary Music, Israeli record label Works * ...

organization of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from 1974 to 1980. Naomi Maxfield was born in Provo, Utah. She married Roden Grant Shumway. In 1963, Shumway became a member of the general board of the

Primary Association The Primary (formerly the Primary Association) is a children's organization and an Auxiliary organization (LDS Church), official organization within the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). It acts as a Sunday school organi ...

. In 1974, Shumway was selected to succeed

LaVern W. Parmley LaVern Watts Parmley (January 1, 1900 – January 27, 1980) was the fifth general president of the Primary of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). Parmley was the first woman to be awarded the Silver Buffalo Award from the ...

as general president of the organization. Parmley had been the president of the Primary for 23 years. Shumway served until 1980, when she was succeeded by Dwan J. Young. During Shumway's tenure, the Primary celebrated the 100th anniversary of its founding in 1878 by

Aurelia Spencer Rogers Aurelia Read Spencer Rogers (October 4, 1834 – August 19, 1922) was the founder of Primary, the children's organization and official auxiliary of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Rogers was also a women's rights activist and ...

. In 1980, Shumway and her counselors approved of a plan to end Primary on weekdays and to incorporate it into the LDS Church's three-hour Sunday worship services. However, the implementation of this plan was left to Shumway's successor, Dwan J. Young. In the early 1990s, Shumway was selected to write the entry for Primary for

Macmillan MacMillan, Macmillan, McMillen or McMillan may refer to: People * McMillan (surname) * Clan MacMillan, a Highland Scottish clan * Harold Macmillan, British statesman and politician * James MacMillan, Scottish composer * William Duncan MacMillan ...

’s '' Encyclopedia of Mormonism''.

References

Arnold K. Garr Arnold Kent Garr (born June 14, 1944) was the chair of the department of Church History and Doctrine at Brigham Young University (BYU) from 2006 to 2009. He was also the lead editor of the ''Encyclopedia of Latter-day Saint History''. Biography ...

Donald Q. Cannon Donald Quayle Cannon (born 1936) is a retired professor at Brigham Young University who specializes in Latter-day Saint history, particularly early Latter-day Saint history and international Latter-day Saint history. As a young man, Cannon was a ...

Richard O. Cowan Richard Olsen Cowan (born 1934) is a historian of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) and a former professor in the Church History Department of Brigham Young University (BYU). He was one of the longest-serving BYU faculty a ...

(eds.) (2000). ''Encyclopedia of Latter-day Saint History'' (Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Book) *

Carol Cornwall Madsen Carol Cornwall Madsen (born 1930) is an emeritus professor of history at Brigham Young University (BYU) where she was a research historian with the Joseph Fielding Smith Institute for Church History. She also served as associate director of BYU's ...

and Susan Staker Oman. (1978). ''Sisters and Little Saints: One Hundred Years of Primary'' (Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Book) * Janet Peterson and LaRene Gaunt (1996). ''The Children's Friends: Presidents of the Primary and Their Lives of Service'' (Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Book)
"New Presidency Sustained for Primary"
'' Ensign'', November 1974. {{DEFAULTSORT:Shumway, Naomi M. 1922 births 2004 deaths American Latter Day Saint writers American leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints General Presidents of the Primary (LDS Church) Latter Day Saints from Utah Writers from Provo, Utah