Obituaries

DR KENNETH JL VAN AMEYDE

APR 7 1955 – OCT 7 2025

Ken passed away on Oct 7 at the Health Sciences Center, surrounded by family.  He is survived by his children David and Kathryn, his partner Lisa and her kids Arin and Liam, his brother Huby, and his beloved dog Blizzard.  Ken is preceded in his death by his wife Lindy and his parents Tine and Hank.

Ken was born in Edmonton, from where he would eventually graduate from the medical program at the University of Alberta.  He spent some time working there and in St. John’s before eventually settling in Winnipeg, where he lived and worked the rest of his life.

Ken greatly enjoyed his many years working at the HSC as an internist, and trained generations of doctors during his time there.  He was exceptionally committed to his work; once, when a blizzard made driving impossible, he simply skied to work instead.  He expected the same level of commitment from his residents, and he had a reputation for being an exacting but fair teacher and for rocking his trademark scrub-top and blue jeans outfit.

Ken’s hobbies included camping with his family, cross-country skiing, reading spy novels, complaining about the Blue Bombers, and happily devouring (less happily sharing) home-made boterkoek and shortbread.  He was also a very capable handy-man, completing all sorts of projects and repairs over his life, and he was fond of surveying his enormous and often duplicated tool collection while expressing that one can never have enough tools.  That he sustained several injuries during these projects – usually self-inflicted, though not that time with the nailgun – should not be seen as a commentary on his skill, but rather on his sheer determination to do it himself.

Ken was also a man possessed of a particular type of eloquence.  Some of his favourite phrases included “slicker than snot on a doorknob”, “like a fart in a snowstorm”, “couldn’t organize a two-man rush on a three-hole shithouse”, and “couldn’t find his own ass with two hands and a map”.  His inner wordsmith shone the most when describing Winnipeg drivers, traffic engineers, and select politicians, but those words will not be shared here, lest the Free Press be unable to print today’s paper.

Most of all, Ken was well-loved by many, and he will be dearly missed.

There will be a come-and-go Celebration of Life between 10am to 6pm on Saturday Oct 25th at 175 Woodhaven Blvd, Winnipeg MB, and all who knew Ken are invited.  Please dress casually – blue jeans are encouraged in Ken’s honour. There is parking available on the street or at the Portage entrance to Woodhaven Park.

In lieu of flowers, food, or gifts to the family, please donate to a charity of your choice, or consider donating blood with Canadian Blood Services.

Thank you to Dr Minuk and the staff of HSC/CancerCare who cared for Ken over the years.