Mr. Kenneth Dye

January 16, 1936 - September 5, 2023

On the first Tuesday of September, Ken Dye left this earthly world to move to a more comfortable place. Left behind to cherish and honour him are his beloved wife of 65 years, Frances (née Johnson), children and their spouses, Beth and Gerry, Lesleigh and Ravi and James and Christa. Grandpappy will also be remembered lovingly by his four wonderful grandchildren: Peter, Patrick, Philip and Paul. Brother Laurie (Pym), brother-in law (Manly), sisters-in-law (Roberta and Pat D.) are also remembering him at this time. Ken was predeceased by his brother, Gardiner, sister-in-law, Peggy and brother-in-law, Sherman. Multiple nieces and nephews, who were loved by Uncle Ken, remember him as a dedicated family member, proud of all Dyes and Johnsons.

Ken loved to learn and was proud of his academic accomplishments. A top academic award winner in the Vancouver School District when he graduated from Lord Byng, he moved on to UBC to study engineering. Ken soon realized that he had a love affair with numbers and moved on to study accounting, becoming a BC Chartered Accountant on September 7th, 1962. Determined to pursue a university degree and with tremendous support from Fran, Ken enrolled in the first Executive MBA program at Simon Fraser University in 1968 and proudly graduated with his family by his side in 1971. Soon to move into the position of Senior Partner with Campbell, Sharp, Nash and Field, Ken took on the challenge of becoming ICABC president in 1979/80. Now representing BC on a national stage, he was asked to submit his name to become Canada’s next Auditor General. He was successful in this bid and became Auditor General of Canada, April 1st, 1981, a position he proudly held until March 31st, 1991. He served both the Pierre Trudeau and Brian Mulroney governments as an Officer of Parliament.

Throughout his 10-year term as AG, Ken moved the Office of the Auditor General forward with value for money auditing, forensic auditing and bringing new technologies to the forefront to make auditing friendly to the general public. He was so proud of his anti-smoking initiative, the first in Canada’s federal sector. Ken loved this work and proudly traveled the world to help other nations improve their auditing processes. Being a member of INTOSAI, the International Organization for Supreme Audit Institutions was a thrill for him. Ken also loved the opportunity to host the Commonwealth Auditors General in Ottawa during his tenure.

After leaving the OAG, Ken served briefly as the President of the Workers’ Compensation Board in BC. Returning to Ottawa, a dynamic position came available maximizing all of Ken’s talents: Senior Vice-President of Cowater Associates. Once again, he took his multiple skill sets to developing countries to help improve the lives of individuals around the world, work which he was extremely proud of. Retirement from work finally caught up to Ken at the age of 83.

Although Ken loved working, he loved his family and his country more. Raised in the Anglican Church and devoted to serving his community, Ken participated in numerous boards and charitable events over the years. With Fran by side, camping and canoeing

were a priority. Canoeing the Bowron Lakes twice, hiking the Chilkoot Trail three times, canoeing the Yukon River from Whitehorse to Dawson and hiking the West Coast Trail were all wonderful adventures organized and executed by Fran and Ken for themselves and their children. Love and respect of the outdoors was all part of Ken’s association with the Boy Scouts of Canada. Multiple years were spent in that organization as a participant, leader and fundraiser.

Travel called to Fran and Ken. They loved going anywhere at any time, prompting the family mantra to be ‘always have your passport up to date’. Traveling to every province and territory was a priority as was seeing the world. Ken and Fran went to all seven continents and developed a huge love of cruising later in life, with over 500 days enjoyed at sea. Learning about and admiring other cultures and ways of life, let alone the magnitude of the earth’s geography inspired both Fran and Ken. Ken’s last cruise with Fran took place in May 2023, where they cruised to Anchorage, Alaska and back to Vancouver.

Over the years, Ken was recognized by many institutions with multiple honours and awards. Chief among them was his first FCA (Fellow of the Chartered Accountants) in 1967. He then went on to achieve two more, Ontario and Quebec. He was awarded four honorary doctorates: Lakehead University, Simon Fraser University, University of Ottawa and Waterloo University.

Having grown up in Vancouver, moving to the North Shore in 1962, the move to Ottawa in 1981 opened numerous opportunities for both Ken, Fran and their family. First priority for Ken was learning French, lessons which he took at 7:30 am each morning throughout his tenure as Auditor General. But it was Whistler that became the family’s home away from home with Christmases and multiple holidays enjoyed there from 1977 to 2013. Skiing was a passion for all Dyes, carried on today. Ken will be interned in the Whistler cemetery.

Ken believed in being an exemplary member of the community, giving back to many organizations with both time and expertise. Everyone who knew him or worked with him valued that opportunity.

Special thanks and recognition to the staff on the second floor at the Rockcliffe (Chartwell Residence) for providing exceptional and respectful care to dad. For the last month of his life, Ken lived on the second floor, in assisted care. He was extremely thankful that he was able to stay there until the end.

Should you wish to make a charitable donation in Ken’s name, he was devoted to Perley Health, Boys Scouts of Canada, or SPCA (in recognition of Ken’s love for all of his animals: Skipper, Chimo, Mon amie, Whistler and Mogul) or a charity of your choosing.

A memorial service will be held on Saturday, Sept 30th at 1:00pm, at St. Bartholomew’s Anglican Church in Ottawa, with a reception to follow. There will be an additional memorial service on Saturday, November 25, 2023 at 1:00 pm at St. Christopher's Anglican Church, 1068 Inglewood Ave., West Vancouver, BC with a reception to follow.