JUNE 2005 ISSUE
OBITUARIES
LIFE MEMBER
DR. GEORGE FORD, p.ENG.
A memorial service June 1 in Edmonton celebrated the life of Dr. George Ford, P.Eng., a member of the University of Alberta Faculty of Engineering for 43 years, its former dean and the founder of the U of A Department of Mechanical Engineering. Dr. Ford, an APEGGA life member and winner of three other APEGGA awards, died peacefully in his sleep at age 85 on May 26.
The son of Scottish immigrants, Dr. Ford was born in 1919 at Pocahontas, near the entrance to Jasper National Park , and he grew up in the coal town of Cadomin with his sisters. He spent much of his time fishing and picking huckleberries, activities he kept up throughout his life.
He won a scholarship to the U of A, where he studied civil engineering. During the Second World War, he worked on the Alaska Highway and then completed his doctorate in mechanical engineering at Stanford University in California .
Dr. Ford joined the U of A Faculty of Engineering in 1942 as a sessional lecture, going on to become dean and professor emeritus. He received his master’s degree in science from the U of A in 1946. In 1988 the university awarded Dr. Ford an honorary doctorate of science.
He earned many awards through his career, including a 1978 Gold Medal from the Canadian Council of Professional Engineers. The CCPE citation said that “although his most significant personal technical achievements are in the area of fracture mechanics, probably his most lasting memorials are his contributions to engineering education.”
Among his other awards are the APEGGA Prize in 1942, the Standard Oil of California Fellowship from 1946-48, a life membership in APEGGA in 1964, the Jubilee Medal in 1977, a fellowship in the Engineering Institute of Canada in 1981, and a fellowship in the Canadian Society for Mechanical Engineering in 1988.
Dr. Ford won APEGGA’s L.C. Charlesworth Award in 1981 for his contributions to APEGGA and the advancement of its professions, and the Association’s Centennial Award in 1975 for professional leadership.
Service to others lay at the heart of Dr. Ford’s life. He was a charter member, a trustee and a steward at St. Paul ’s United Church , where his memorial service was held. He was a founding member of the St. Paul ’s Foundation and for many years managed the church’s apartments for senior citizens and low-income families.
Dr. Ford served on the YMCA Board of Directors and chaired its World Service Committee. He was president of Miles for Millions and a life member of the Probus Club of South Edmonton. And he helped develop engineering faculties in Bangladesh and Iran .
He shared his love of fishing and the mountains with his family, and in later years enjoyed reading to his grandchildren.
Predeceased by his first wife, Catherine, Dr. Ford is survived by his second wife, Louise; his sons Gordon and Neil, and stepson Peter and their families; his daughters Margaret and Elizabeth, and stepdaughter Mary and their families; 11 grandchildren; and many others.