Former Linfield College assistant football and baseball coach Ken Garland passed away unexpectedly on March 16 in Seattle at age 60. He had been recovering from surgery to alleviate a brain tumor.
 
He is survived by his wife, Cathy, sons Chris and Matthew, and three grandchildren, Chase, Justin and Adelei.
 
Garland coached at Linfield from 1992 until 1995. In football, he oversaw the receivers. In baseball, he served as varsity assistant coach.
 
Though he was on the coaching staff three short years, Garland left an indelible impression on those around him.
 
"Ken brought an immediate infusion of energy and spirit into our football program," Linfield football coach Joseph Smith remembers. "Ken was a fantastic football and baseball coach and an even greater recruiter."
 
During Garland's first season on the football staff in 1992, the Wildcats and new head coach Ed Langsdorf won 12 of 13 games, reaching the NAIA national championship game. Linfield won the Columbia Football Association Mt. Hood League title each of his three years with the program.
 
"Ken enjoyed working with student-athletes so much and it was contagious. His enthusiasm and positive nature rubbed off on so many around him, and his fire and passion were inspiring," said Smith. "He was a tremendous mentor to me. I'm so grateful to have been able to work with Ken and to be able to call him a dear friend."
 

Smith was influenced by Garland as a player on the 1992 team, then worked alongside him as a graduate assistant coach the following two seasons.
 
"Throughout his coaching career Ken positively impacted many young men's lives; he has made a difference in this world. He dearly loved his wife, his boys, and his family; he was a tremendous example of how to live one's life. We will miss him greatly."
 
Working with then-head coach Scott Carnahan, Garland helped the baseball program achieve success similar to that of football, winning three consecutive Northwest Conference championships. The Wildcats were runner-up in the 1993 NAIA District 2 playoffs.
 
"Ken was a dear friend and was a great and kind man. He was an asset to all young men he coached over many years," said Carnahan. "Words cannot express the sadness I feel hearing that Ken passed away. I knew he had a tough journey to recover from his recent operation and treatment.
 
"My heart goes out to his wife Cathy and sons Chris and Matt during this very difficult time."
 
Garland departed Linfield in the summer of 1995 to accept the head baseball coaching position at Puget Sound while also serving as the football team's defensive coordinator. In 2008, he migrated to St. Martin's to direct that school's baseball program.
 
In 2014, Garland was named the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Coach of the Year after guiding St. Martin's to the GNAC championship tournament.
 
At St. Martin's, he also served as grounds supervisor, overseeing care of all the athletic fields as well as landscaping around academic buildings, recreation facilities, residence halls and campus entrances.
 
Prior to his arrival at Linfield, Garland was an assistant coach at Willamette, Western Oregon and Idaho State universities.
 
He earned bachelor's degrees in economics and physical education at Willamette in 1980 and completed a master's degree in athletic administration at Idaho State in 1987.
 
A dual-sport athlete at Willamette, Garland was football team captain. He received all-conference honors in football and baseball.
 
A memorial service is expected to be held on the St. Martin's campus, though the date and time has yet to be finalized.