Kenneth Orville McKeown

Kenneth Orville McKeown passed away at his home in Abbotsford on October 9, 2025 after a lengthy illness. Ken was predeceased by his mother Catherine Warren and father James Orville McKeown (Ruth) and younger brother Donald. Ken will be deeply missed by his loving wife of 60 years, Kareen, his son Jim, daughter Andrea and granddaughter Safi. Ken will also be deeply missed by his three brothers, David, Kevin and Trevor McKeown, his sister Cathie Baker (Colin) and many nieces and nephews.

Throughout his life, Ken excelled in tackling projects, large and small. In his early days living on Second Avenue in Kitsilano, Ken's mother asked him to prune a tree in the backyard - he ended up chopping the tree down to its roots. Ken was always very thorough and determined.

One summer he decided he was going to bike all the way to Prince Rupert in order to work with his Dad off the north coast on Trutch Island. He may not have biked the whole way, but he eventually made it.

Ken attended UBC in the early 1960s and spent summers serving in the navy through the ROTC program. He often reminisced about his time at sea.

In 1964, Ken decided to take on another challenge and began his career in the forest industry as an apprentice at a pulp and paper mill in Ocean Falls. During a visit home to Vancouver that year, he asked Kareen if she would marry him. They married in December of 1964 and moved to Ocean Falls to start their new lives together. They survived the Ocean Falls landslide of 1965, along with Ken's brother David, David's wife Terri and their newborn son Keith.

Ken had a persistent work ethic and attention to detail in every matter. He was dedicated to his work and a career, which brought the family to many places throughout the province: from Ocean Falls to Prince George, Powell River, Kamloops, Port Alberni, Duncan and finally back to Port Alberni where Ken retired as a systems engineer, building and designing computerized control systems for sawmills.

In 2001 Andrea presented them with a beautiful granddaughter, Safiyah (Safi), who is now 24.

Ken and Kareen enjoyed living in Port Alberni for many years, until they eventually moved to Abbotsford in 2012 to be closer to family.

There will be no service as per Ken’s request. Ken will be cremated and interred at Alberni Valley Memorial Gardens.