Marc E. Fey

Marc E. Fey, age 71, of Overland Park, Kansas passed away on September 12, 2023. He was born on September 6, 1952, in Wichita, Kansas, where he grew up. Following his graduation from Wichita East High School, he pursued his bachelor’s degree from Wichita State University, master’s degree from the University of Georgia, and Ph.D. from Purdue University. He met his wife, Sandy while they were both studying speech pathology at the University of Georgia. They quickly fell in love and were married in Charleston, South Carolina on June 11, 1977. Marc and Sandy relocated to London, Ontario, where they worked for the University of Western Ontario in the Hearing and Speech department. Marc was renowned for his research in language disorders in children and speech-sound disorders, teaching master’s and Ph.D. students, and lecturing around the world. One of his colleagues admired his dedication to students and described him as “ever the mentor.” He retired as an emeritus professor for the Hearing and Speech department at the University of Kansas Medical Center. He has published numerous articles, chapters and software programs on children’s speech and language development and disorders and has written and edited three books on language intervention. He served as the editor of the American Journal of Speech Language Pathology and Chair of the American Speech Language Hearing Association’s (ASHA) publications board. He holds the Kawana Award for Lifetime Achievement in Publications and the Honors of the Association from ASHA.

Where he found the time, we will never know, yet he pursued many interests outside of his profession. He was an avid Kansas City Royals fan even through their darkest of years. He also supported the Chiefs, KU Jayhawks, and Wichita State Shockers. Marc gave 110% to all of his hobbies. He spent countless hours playing the banjo and drums and listening to his favorite bands: the Beatles, the Byrds, and his brother’s band, Treefrog. He tirelessly practiced to perfect his golf swing, and in his retirement, he was determined to achieve conversational Spanish by online chatting with his Zoom pal, who lives countries away.

On a typical week, you would find Marc and Sandy going to the movies, meeting up with friends for lunch, and taking their granddaughter, Emerson on weekly outings. They also enjoyed quiet evenings at home together as well as hosting family dinners every Sunday to hear about the previous week’s events. Marc and Sandy loved traveling the world together. Their favorite trips included an Alaskan cruise, Iceland, a European river cruise, and visiting New Zealand and Australia.

Above all, Marc was a dedicated family man. Marc and Sandy adopted two children from South Korea, Marshall and Alyssa. Marc enjoyed coaching their baseball and softball teams, rooting them on from the stands in their many sports and school endeavors, and guiding them through their academic years. Many of his speaking engagements were doubled into vacations, so he could travel the states and abroad with his family. Family vacations and holidays were always extra special to Marc when spent with his extended family. Perhaps his favorite title earned was ‘Papa’ as he especially loved spending time with his three grandchildren: Emerson, Maya, and Will.

He will be forever loved by his son, Marshall; daughter, Alyssa (Tyler) Voorhies; three grandchildren: Emerson, Maya, and Will; brother, Jim (Liz); sister, Cindy (Hal) Brandom, sister, Jane Fey; nephew, Ty (Marcy) Kirk; niece, Katie (David) Fey; nephew, Nate (Lauren) Kirk; and nephew, Corey Fey. He is preceded in death by his wife, Sandy; parents, Bill and Maxae Fey.

The memorial service will be held on Sunday, September 24, 2023 at 11:00 am at McGilley & Hoge Chapel, located at 8024 Santa Fe Drive, Overland Park, KS 66204. We encourage attendees to wear their favorite band or sports team t-shirt in honor of Marc and his love of music and all teams Kansas. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Parkinson’s Foundation or the American Parkinson’s Disease Association.

For those who will be in the area on Saturday, September 23, 2023, Marc’s brother, Jim and his band, Treefrog will be performing in Lawrence, KS at the Bottleneck at 8 pm. They will be making a tribute to Marc. We would love to see you there!

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.mcgilleyhoge.com for the Fey family.