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Kenneth W. Towery ’56

Ken Towery, a 1956 initiate, is a brother that took the principles of Kappa Sigma past his college career and succeeded in his post-graduate life. When Ken came to the University of Kentucky and decided to rush, he found that the men of Kappa Sigma had the quality, character and integrity that he looked for in an organization. In his eyes, the men of Kappa Sigma seemed to have a higher caliber of guys than other fraternities.

During his time as an undergraduate, Brother Towery was the social chairman of the fraternity and really knew how to dress well, considering he was the winner of Campus Fraternities Best Dressed Contest. In addition to Kappa Sigma, Ken was a member of Persian Rifles the ROTC program, a cheerleader and an avid intramural sport player.

He graduated from the University of Kentucky with a degree in Bachelor of Science in Business Management and Marketing in 1959. As an alumni, Ken is part of the UK Fellows Association and a K-Fund Contributor. He was awarded the John G. Tower Distinguished Alumnus Award and was inducted into UK Hall of Honor.

After college, Ken worked with Firestone Tire and Rubber Company from 1958 through 1971. During this time, he became the district manager and a retail store manager. His work for Firestone influenced him to open his own business called Ken Towery’s Tire and AutoCare. Ken’s work ethic lead his company expand from one store to thirty two stores and a wholesale operation. He also won several awards, such as National Tire Dealer of the Year, Hankook Tire Company Partners in Excellence Award, and Entrepreneur of the Year finalist for Kentucky and Southern Ohio.

The Louisville community is important to Ken. He was a member of the Foundation Board of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and gave his time to the Toys for Tots Foundation. He was awarded extensive awards for his service to his community, such as the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary Bruce W. Benton Distinguished Service Award, City of Louisville Distinguished Citizens Award and the U.S. Marines Commanders Award for his Toys for Tots work.

Ken attributes his experience in the Kappa Sigma fraternity in learning building determination, having honesty in everything you do, being more competitive, and how to make better decisions. The bottom line is that Kappa Sigma fraternity takes a young person fresh out of the high school environment and greatly helps him develop into a winner in life. One work that Ken describes a Kappa Sig is “Leadership”.

Brother Towery wants to impress onto the current Beta-Nu members that they “should be the best of the best in everything they do. Be honest, be sincere, be fair, be forgiving, be a hard worker, maintain your integrity and keep God in your life. He wants to remind them that you can do anything that you want to do, if you want to do it bad enough and if it is in reason.”

His final words to the boys are a simple “Get ‘er done and God bless you and your future.”