Roy Victor Ferguson

Roy was raised in the little town of Two Hills, Alberta. His family consisted

of his Father, Sandy; his mother, Annette; his two sisters, Linda and Norma;

and his brother, Gary. Roy was particularly close to his father, often

crediting his dad for teaching him to appreciate the beauty of nature.

Roy’s father, whose full name was Alexander King Ferguson, had

emigrated to Canada from Ireland at the age of twelve with his older sister

and three brothers. Family lore has it that the family had been booked on

the Titanic but had to cancel because of a problem with the sale of their

parents’ land.

Roy’s father owned a small plot of land which he farmed in the spring and

summer. It provided a meagre income which barely provided the

necessities of life for the family. During winter months, Roy’s dad would

seek work in the northern forest. Nevertheless, money was always scarce.

Roy was an intelligent, curious, and conscientious lad. He did well in

school, often winning prizes for his high marks. Around the age of thirteen

or fourteen, Roy became very interested in music. His father scraped up

enough money to buy him his first guitar. Working diligently with a friend,

Roy taught himself to play and, a few years later, he was part of an

established local band, the Rhumba Kings, which played at community

events around the region.

His favourite high school teacher encouraged him to attend university after

graduation but, of course, there was no money for this. So, for a year after

high school, Roy worked at the local chemical plant where he was exposed

to backbreaking and sometimes dangerous physical labor. It was gruelling

but it allowed him to save enough money to begin his university education.

Moving to Edmonton was rather like moving to a foreign country for this

small town boy. Everything was new. Somehow he got registered at the

University of Alberta as a Chemistry major, found lodging, and discovered

the wonders of the big city, such as pizza, jazz, and Ingmar Bergman films.

By his second year, Roy realized he wasn’t destined to be a chemist and

changed his major to Psychology. Very soon he was also playing the

electric bass with an established band that performed regularly in various

Edmonton pubs. He became a recognized part of the music scene and the

money he earned helped greatly with his expenses.

When he completed his BA in Psychology, he was able to get a job at the

Glenrose Hospital in Edmonton where he met a vibrant young nurse,

named Faye, who was destined to play a major role in his life.

He was working five days a week at the hospital while also playing in the

band every night. Roy knew he couldn’t keep up this pace - he had to

make a decision for his future to either pursue music in a serious way or to

make a career in psychology. He chose psychology and sold most of his

musical equipment to affirm his choice.

On a bitterly cold day in December, 1968, Roy Ferguson and Faye Carr

were married in Calgary. By this time, Roy was working on a Masters

degree at the University of Calgary. He had completed a year when he

received an offer he couldn’t refuse - if he returned to the University of

Alberta he could enter directly into a PhD program. It was a no-brainer.

Faye and Roy moved back to Edmonton where Faye completed her B.Sc.N

and worked at the University of Alberta hospital. Roy completed his PhD

while working in a very innovative program for children with language and

behaviour problems.

Shortly after Roy completed his PhD, he and Faye left for a six-month trip

to the south Pacific visiting Hawaii, Fiji, Samoa, New Caledonia, New

Zealand, and Australia. It was a wonderful trip that truly cemented their

relationship. As they were nearing the end, Roy heard about a position

available for the Director of a new Psychology department at the Alberta

Children’s Hospital in Calgary. He applied and a hurried trip back to

Canada resulted in his being selected. During his tenure at ACH, Roy had

the opportunity to build the Psychology department from scratch and

determine the scope of psychology practice within a hospital setting. It was

a wonderful challenge for this intelligent and hard working young guy.

In the mid-70’s Roy and Faye purchased their first house which Roy spent

hours renovating. They were settled in Calgary when a friend sent them an

ad from Victoria’s Times Colonist newspaper inviting applicants for the

position of Director of the School of Child Care at the University of Victoria.

Roy and Faye had visited Victoria several times and loved the city. Faye

urged Roy to apply for the job because “it could mean a free trip to

Victoria”. So he applied, got the free trip, and got the job.

Roy was the second Director of the School of Child Care. It was a fledgling

School, just getting started. Several other new faculty came on board

around the same time, all young and keen to be part of this new venture.

Roy remained part of the School (later renamed the School of Child and

Youth Care) for thirty years, as Director and, later, in a variety of roles. One

of his colleagues had this to say about him:

Roy was always available for students and became a tremendous support

for them when they experienced difficulties. He was an amazing listener,

always calm, generous with his time. He modelled the very attributes we

attempted to teach in the school. He was always available for faculty as

well. Much of the time he played the role of assistant director for many of

the faculty over the years. He was the ultimate colleague!

Shortly after arriving in Victoria, Roy and Faye applied to adopt a baby. The

wait was long and the process arduous but the outcome was wonderful.

After twenty-eight months of anticipation, a two-month-old baby boy joined

the family. They named him Alexander, after Roy’s father, and thus began

Roy’s journey as a dad. He loved every minute of it.

Roy took delight in every stage of Alexander’s development. As Alexander

grew older, Roy was delighted to see that his son was drawn to music. As

Alexander grew up, he became a very skilled and talented keyboardist,

singer, composer, song writer, and teacher. Roy took great delight in

supporting Alexander in all his musical endeavours. Music became an

especially strong bond that the two shared.

Roy retired from the University of Victoria in 2009. He loved retirement - it

probably was the best time of his life. He and Faye were able to travel to

Amsterdam, Rome, Venice, Paris, Nice, and Vienna as well as several trips

to Hawaii. Roy was also able to hone his skills in woodworking, gardening,

and continued to pursue his long-held interest in photography. He and

Faye moved out of the 110-year-old heritage house in which they had lived

for over thirty years and moved to a much newer house with a glorious

multi-level garden. Roy referred to it as “The Palazzo” - he loved

everything about his new home. During the covid pandemic, Roy spent

most of his time tending his garden with his best buddy, the family’s sweet

little rescue dog Ellie, by his side. By the time the world emerged from

covid, his garden was a real show piece.

During his retirement, Roy also undertook a project that was very close to

his heart. He made a thirty-minute film about his friend, Mo Marshall, who

had been a highly respected musician in Edmonton in the ‘60s and ‘70s.

As good a musician as Mo was, Roy was aware that Mo was much more

than that. He wanted the film to celebrate all aspects of this talented man.

Over the course of six years, with the help of many of Mo’s friends and

family, the film came together. In June, 2023, it had its premier showing in

Edmonton with Mo and his wife in attendance along with many of Mo’s old

musician friends and colleagues. The film, entitled Mo Marshall:

Renaissance Man, now resides in the collections of the National Music

Centre in Calgary.

Roy passed away at home on a sunny autumn day in October, 2023. He

had been struggling with lymphoma of the brain, a relatively rare form of

cancer, for about three months. The disease caused him to become

increasingly fatigued, bewildered, and weak, yet he remained the gentle,

kind, and often humorous man he’d always been. As the end became

imminent, Roy was placed in a hospital bed next to a large window that

looked out onto his beloved garden. Fortunately, he had no pain and was

able to depart peacefully with Faye by his side.