End came peacefully for Bombers legend Ken Ploen

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This article was published 14/02/2024 (572 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The end of Ken Ploen’s life came peacefully.

The 88-year-old Winnipeg Blue Bombers quarterback legend died Tuesday at his personal care home in Winnipeg after a lengthy illness.

He had been suffering from dementia for more than a decade.

“I’m doing fine,” said his widow, Janet Ploen, on Wednesday. “I’m sad and I’m happy. I’m so happy that Ken is at peace and out of his misery and not having to fit in his wheelchair every day. I’m happy for that but he will be truly missed a great deal.”

Janet Ploen said she was grateful for the support she has received from many well-wishers.

“They’re keeping their distance but I have had a lot of wonderful messages from people and my son-in-law (Randy Hosegood) has been here helping me,” she said. “I don’t know what I would have done without him because my daughter Carol (Hosegood-Ploen) left for Costa Rica on Monday. She’s coming home tomorrow though… So I’ve had lots of help and lots of support.”

Ken Ploen is survived by his son Doug, daughters Carol and Kendra and eight grandchildren.

Funeral plans are pending.

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Phil Minnick had a special appreciation for the legend of Ken Ploen.

Seven years Ploen’s junior, Minnick was a high school football player in Iowa City, Iowa in the late 1950s when Ploen was starring at quarterback for the University of Iowa Hawkeyes.

Not long after, he moved north to Winnipeg and became a teammate of Ploen’s with the CFL’s Winnipeg Blue Bombers.

On Wednesday, Minnick was among the many mourning the Canadian Football Hall of Famer.

“He was a huge star,” said the 81-year-old Minnick from his home in Pinawa. “I was in high school and I followed his career all through college.

“That’s why I came to Winnipeg to play because he spoke to me about the Bombers and told me how good it was. And so I said, ‘Yeah, that sounds great to me.’ So Kenny was the reason I came up here and played for 10 years.”

Minnick, a linebacker for the Blue Bombers from 1965 to 1973 after a college career at Northern Iowa, said his old teammate had a rare gift for leadership.

“He was a great individual,” said Minnick. “On the field he did everything right and off the field he was even better. He was friendly to anyone and everyone at events and I don’t think ever had an enemy anywhere. He just was one of those kind of people who got along with everybody and everybody liked him.”

A superb runner and all-round athlete, Minnick said Ploen had a brain to match his athleticism.

“What impressed me was just how intelligent he was to use the players he had available,” said Minnick. “He knew how to use the running backs and he knew who would be a good receiver. He just was very, very intelligent quarterback who knew all his players and he knew how to use them. That was very important.”

Noel Dunford, another former Winnipeg teammate, knew Ploen by reputation while growing up in Kenora, Ont., and he wasn’t disappointed when he joined him on the field.

“When he signed with Winnipeg and then I came later on in ‘63 and I was just so impressed with him — he was such a solid guy,” said Dunford.

“He was a good leader and a very good player. He wasn’t the greatest passer, but he was still good and he could get the ball there and of course he could run, too, so he was ideal for the Canadian Football League.”

mike.sawatzky@freepress.mb.ca