[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 1 (Tuesday, January 20, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E15]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       HONORING HARRY NASH SYKES

                                 ______
                                 

                   HON. CHARLES W. ``CHIP'' PICKERING

                             of mississippi

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, January 20, 2004

  Mr. PICKERING. Mr. Speaker, yesterday we celebrated Martin Luther 
King, Jr. Day in Starkville, Mississippi and honored a native son and 
civil rights leader, Harry Nash Sykes. During his life he overcame 
adversity to excel as a public servant, educator, and athlete.
  Sykes was born on April 1, 1927 to Marie Hall Sykes and P.K. Sykes in 
Starkville, Mississippi. He spent his early childhood years there and 
when he was 16, his family, led by his father P.K. Sykes, a tenant 
farmer and part-time minister, moved to Chicago.
  While still in school, Sykes worked in a can factory for 72 cents an 
hour to help support his family. After World War II, he combined 
athletics with academics and became a four-sport star in high school, 
graduating in 1948 to attend Kentucky State University on a basketball 
and track scholarship. Sykes earned a bachelors degree in physical 
education from Kentucky State and later earned a master's degree in 
mathematics from the University of Minnesota.
  After graduating from Kentucky State University in 1952, Sykes joined 
the world famous Harlem Globetrotters through the 1954 season. From 
1954 until 1962, he taught high school mathematics for the Lexington 
Public School System at Dunbar High School and coached the Junior High 
School's basketball team. Sykes built a diverse business career as an 
insurance salesman, the Business Development Officer for Second 
National Bank, a real estate broker, and the Contract Compliance 
Officer with Frankfort, Kentucky's Department of Finance.
  In 1963, Sykes was elected as the first African American councilman 
for the city of Lexington. He was reelected in 1965, 1967 and 1969. 
Between 1967 and 1969, Sykes also served as Mayor Pro-Temp. In 1971, he 
ran for Mayor of Lexington, but lost by a narrow margin. From 1972 to 
1974, he served as Acting City Manager and, from 1974 until 1975, 
worked as the Acting Chief Administration Officer (CAO) for the Urban 
County Government.
  Sykes served his community on various boards and commissions 
including the Board of Management of the YMCA and the Historical 
Pleasant Green Baptist Church. In 1968, he founded the Lexington-
Fayette County Urban League and served as president until 1972. Sykes 
has been honored with numerous awards, including the Outstanding 
Citizen's Award by the Council of Christians and Jews in 1969.
  Sykes is married to Geraldine Higgins Sykes and has five children: 
Harry, Melvin, Paula, Kevin and Kermit and members of their extended 
family still live in Starkville and Oktibbeha County, where Sykes is 
remembered and proudly called a son of Mississippi.




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