F. HATT

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HATT, F. Ken
Peacefully, at home in the arms of his wife. Ken passed away on December 13, 2012 just four days before his 75th birthday. Predeceased by his parents, Frank G. Hatt (Winnipeg, Manitoba) and Nancy Donaldson (Enid, Oklahoma) and his sister Eva Anderson. He will be greatly missed by his wife, Susan; his children, Kierstin (Brian Small), Erin Christie (Dean Snell) and Bill Christie (Anika Kelloway); grandchildren, Caius, Jackson, Rowan, Arden, Danae and Eva Mae; his twin sister, Roberta McDonald, and brothers George (Donna) and Dave (Teal); as well as nieces, nephews, friends, colleagues and thousands of ex-students all over the world.
Ken was born in Terrell, Texas and lived his early years there before moving to Douglas, Arizona for junior high and highschool. Ken was an active member of the Douglas Highschool class of '56 where he participated in Glee Club, Hi-Y, student council and the Bulldog school newspaper and yearbook. His classmates knew him as a leader both in school and in the Methodist Youth Fellowship. Ken sang harmony in his highschool barbershop quartet which won the Arizona State Championship the year they competed.
He completed his undergraduate degree at Redlands College in California, attended Claremont School of Theology in Claremont, California, completed a Masters degree at California State University, and a PhD in Sociology from the University of Alberta. While a graduate student, he worked full time in the California State prison system and later worked to rehabilitate gang members on the east side of Los Angeles. After teaching briefly at Eastern Oregon College, he entered the faculty of Carleton University in Ottawa in 1970, where he taught Sociology until 1995. While at Carleton, he founded the first undergraduate criminology programme in Canada. He insisted that all students must complete a term of practical experience in a criminal or social justice agency. The programme continues to this day.
In 1995, Ken and Susan moved to Victoria where Ken joined the Department of Sociology at the University of Victoria as an adjunct professor. He taught mostly large undergraduate courses until 2006 when he turned to students doing graduate work. At this time, his academic work concentrated on food, specifically trade liberalization, food governance and the impact of trade liberalization on the ability of peoples around the world to grow their own food. This work became the foundation of a graduate course at the University of Catalonia (Barcelona) which he taught for two years. He completed the second revision of his text book and saw his most recent scholarly article published just weeks before he died.
Ken was an intellectual and an academic fuelled by a strong sense of justice, a well- developed sense of humour and a heart as big as the universe. He was always completely accessible to his family, his many friends and his students. He also wrote poetry, played the ukelele and loved many things: running, soccer, biking, baseball, the Arizona desert, growing organic vegetables, everything Italian (including travel to Italy), good coffee, good wine, good music (who could forget Kenny Bongo?), Monty Python, elephants and chickens to name only a few. His passing will leave a huge hole in the lives of many.
Special thanks to Dr. Jane Papp, Dr. Christine Jones and the Victoria Hospice Palliative Response Team. Donations in Ken's honour may be made to the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust or a charity of your choice.
Funeral Service will be held at 10:30 am on Friday, December 21, 2012 in Victoria, BC at McCall's Downtown, Johnson & Vancouver Streets with a reception to follow. Interment at Ross Bay Cemetery.
Condolences may be offered to the family at www.mccallbros.com
Funeral Home
McCall Gardens Funeral & Cremation Service - Royal Oak
4665 Falaise Drive
Victoria, BC V8Y 1B4
(250) 385-4465
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Published in The Ottawa Citizen on Dec. 18, 2012
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