Obituary: Ken Fernstrom

A an illustration of Ken Fernstrom, by his friend Dr. Gorg Mallia.

Many at UFV will be saddened to hear of the recent passing of Ken Fernstrom, a longtime faculty member in the Communications department.

Ken was well known both as a faculty member involved in several projects connected to communication, and as longtime co-coach of UFV’s men’s soccer team. He and Scott Fast, also a long-serving faculty member, were honoured for their coaching in 2018 when they were inducted into the UFV Cascades Hall of Fame.

During his time as a UFV instructor, Ken taught communications for several decades, was a founding chair of the UCFV research journal, helped found the UCFV Press, and received the UCFV Outstanding Achievement award for his work coordinating the annual International Conference on Information Communication Technologies in Education in Greece for several years.

Scott Fast and Ken Fernstrom coaching in the 1990s.

Samantha Hannah, director of the School of Communication, notes that Ken was instrumental in forging relationships with other departments to create innovative courses and program. For example, he spearheaded the initiative to develop the associate certificate in Essentials in Journalism.

Ken retired from UFV in 2009.

Dr. Gorg Mallia, a professor at the University of Malta, met Ken at the annual International Conference on Information Communication Technologies in Education that UFV helped to organize for several years in the 2000s. He share these memories:

“Ken was a professor at UCFV … not that you could tell straight away. Just before I met him for the first time he had driven a motor bike off a large hill and he was a bundle of bandages and bruises …. but still with the roguish smile on his face that was his eternal characteristic. He was an incredibly loveable scoundrel… always a huge joy to be with.

“He was always the beating heart of the conference … a larger-than-life character, with his Hawaiian shirts and silly hats, his gravelly voice, often cracking some witticism or another — and yet serious in his work. A wonderful, wonderful guy.

Ken Fernstrom receiving his UFV Cascades Hall of Fame award from Jackie Hogan (then acting president) and athletic director Steve Tuckwood in 2018.

Ken Fernstrom sharing a laugh with Virginia Cooke and Dick Bate at the retirement event in 2018.