SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) -- Staff and students at the University of Sioux Falls are mourning the loss of longtime athletic administrator and coach, Ken 'SID' Kortemeyer, who died Monday afternoon. People who worked closely with him remember SID as a man who always put others first. Kortemeyer started his career at the University of Sioux Falls in 1969 as a student manager, back when it was still called Sioux Falls College. "He is USF and will always be USF," University of Sioux Falls head women's basketball coach Travis Traphagen said. "SID was just a fantastic human being. Not only was he just a great mentor for so many, but he was a father figure for a lot of student-athletes, coaches, fans and donors," University of Sioux Falls athletics director Jon Hart said. "Whether it was a really big win or a really tough loss, I lost my dad five or six years ago, that was my go-to guy. I went to SID. SID always had a way of kind of putting everything into perspective in a way that made you feel better about it," University of Sioux Falls men's basketball coach Chris Johnson said. SFPD gives thoughts on social media hoaxes During his time at USF, SID wore plenty of hats. For example, he helped pioneer the sports information director position. That acronym, 'S-I-D,' is how SID got his nickname. He was also the athletic director and a two-time conference coach of the year when he was the head men's and women's golf coach. KELOLAND News sat down with SID in June, and it was clear he always put his athletes first. "It's so great and edifying, if you will, to see them out in the world becoming great citizens, great parents, having worthwhile jobs, and to know that you are a small part of it," Kortemeyer said in June. He also knew how to brighten someone's day. "He would just walk in, you know, 'How are you doing today? Hey, I got one piece of advice: Enjoy your youth,' and you just kind of get a smile, and it help put a little bit of perspective that, if you win a game or lose a game, it's not life or death. There's bigger things in the world," Traphagen said. Through his five decades of service, it's hard to measure just how much he did for USF and how much USF impacted him. "It was a place that I just felt comfortable in, and they allowed me room to grow, and I enjoyed the students, the student-athletes," Kortemeyer said in June. "I don't even know how you would quantify it. He's impacted every student that's walked through the door here since he got here," Johnson said. USF plans to renovate the Stewart Center, and one of the goals is to put SID's name on the facility.