A native of Burlington, New Jersey and a 1978 alumnus of Cedarville University in Ohio, where he played varsity tennis,  Ken Erny was initially hired by Fruitport Faith Christian following college graduation to teach history and begin a soccer program at the school. He stayed for 10 years.
In 1990, Fruitport Community Schools hired Erny to work full-time with their Community Education. In addition, he was named coach of Fruitport High School’s first soccer team and would remain in the position for 19 years. Midway through the 1995-96 school year, he was named the school’s interim athlete director, then embraced the position when it was offered.

As the Trojan’s AD, Erny oversaw the school’s first three

team state championships and a half-dozen individual state titlists. A self-described “workaholic,” he stepped down as the Trojans’ soccer coach following the 2008 season with a 242-133-20 record, including several trips to the regional finals. With an overall record of 335-182-32, he was named to the Michigan High School Soccer Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2015.

Universally respected as an athletic director, Erny was not quite ready to retire from the role but was forced to step down in the summer of 2020 after being diagnosed with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), commonly referred to as Lou Gehrig’s disease. In October 2020, Fruitport’s soccer field was dedicated in his honor, forever to be known as “Ken Erny Field.”