Irving Kearl Barber
February 14, 1923 - April 13, 2012
The Society was profoundly saddened by the passing of its namesake, Dr Irving (Ike) K. Barber on April 13, 2012 at the age of 89. As a founding member of the Society and long-standing member of its Board of Directors, he played an instrumental role in both creating the organization and in managing the expansion of its scholarship and awards programs. He was named as the Society’s first Director Emeritus in 2011.
Ike was passionate about education and worked tirelessly to inspire young people to pursue post-secondary studies. He was particularly interested in securing educational opportunities for aboriginal youth and for students living in remote communities. He lent his name to the Ike Barber Transfer Scholarship and assisted the Society in securing the funding necessary to create the Aboriginal Student Award program.
Ike Barber understood the potential of post-secondary education for both individual students and the province of BC in which they live. The Society benefited greatly from Ike’s advice and commitment and will continue to be inspired by his vision.