About Ken Sikes

Ken Sikes is known to baseball insiders as the 6’5”, 240lb first baseman from Georgia who was drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1992. Despite that being his childhood dream, this is not the Ken Sikes who now lives and works in South Tacoma. Shunned by 28 major league teams who failed to see the value in a 160lb, 3rd string catcher with a weak arm, Ken instead accepted the Army’s invitation to pay his tuition at Furman University. Five years later, thanks to Uncle Sam and Ed VanGeezen, he arrived in Tacoma. After fulfilling his commitment to the military, the brown eyes of a 1st grade teacher made returning to his home state of Tennessee impossible, though he did take a temporary leave from the Northwest to attend graduate school in Atlanta.

After completing his Master’s degree at Columbia Theological Seminary, he returned to Tacoma in 2003 and has been the pastor of Manitou Park Presbyterian Church ever since. Now, almost fifteen years after first driving past exit 133, he and the first grade teacher are married with two kids, one aging Springer Spaniel and yes, a white picket fence. In February, they will increase the population of South Tacoma from 21,998 to 21,999 and are considering names with local roots such as Ivan, Murray Morgan or Taco Man Sikes.