Kenneth William Hawkins

Ken Hawkins went to his Heavenly home on Friday, October 27th, 2023. He was 65 years old. 

Ken was born on July 18th, 1958 in Columbus, MS to SMSgt Bill Hawkins and his wife, Lenel. Growing up in an Air Force family, he lived in many different states. The Hawkins family eventually settled in Bonaire, GA when he was in high school. Ken was the valedictorian for the Class of 1976 at Warner Robins High School. He enrolled at the Georgia Institute of Technology, where he was a co-op with IBM. He graduated from Georgia Tech in 1981 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering. Following graduation, Ken joined AT&T, with a team that eventually operated as Southern Bell, later BellSouth. He earned a Master of Business Administration from the University of Alabama in 1994. During his career as a telecommunications executive, he held many roles in South Georgia, Birmingham, AL, Chicago, IL and Atlanta, GA. Ken retired from Cisco in November of 2020. 

Ken met his wife; Patti at Second Baptist Church of Warner Robins and they were married in 1985. Their only daughter, Olivia, was born in Birmingham, AL. Ken & Patti moved to Stockbridge, GA in 1997 and have called it home ever since. Ken took the words of “Ramblin Wreck” very seriously and encouraged Olivia from a young age to follow in his footsteps. He was very proud Olivia also graduated from Georgia Tech. 

Ken loved life and could find common ground with everyone he met. He had many interests, including good food, college football and music. He was a regular at many restaurants in the Atlanta area, and friends and family saw him as a food influencer many years before such a thing existed. Ken closely followed Georgia Tech and Alabama football, collecting hats & Tervis Tumblers for both teams. He loved spending time at Lake Martin & Gulf Shores, AL. 

Earlier this year, Ken excitedly welcomed his new son-in-law, Kevin Wallace, to the family. He was even more excited that Kevin was also a Georgia Tech graduate and is an excellent cook. The last memory most friends and family have of Ken was from Olivia & Kevin’s wedding weekend in September, where he claimed he was the luckiest man alive. 

His memory will forever be treasured by his loving wife, Patti Hawkins, his pride and joy, Olivia Hawkins Wallace, his son-in-law, Kevin Wallace of Atlanta, GA, and his mother, Lenel Hawkins of Bonaire, GA, and many other loving family members. Ken was preceded in death by his Pop, William (Bill) Hawkins.

The family plans to create an endowed scholarship supporting need-based students at Georgia Tech. If you’d like to donate to the scholarship, you can give online or mail a check to the Georgia Tech Foundation (760 Spring Street, NW, Suite 400 Atlanta, GA 30308)  Please mention “In Memory of Ken Hawkins” in the Special Purpose field at https://mygeorgiatech.gatech.edu/giving/special

Ken’s memorial service will be at Cannon Cleveland (2580 GA-42, McDonough, GA 30253) on Friday, November 3rd at 5:00pm. His family will be receiving visitors at 4:00pm. On Saturday, November 4th, there will be a graveside service at Magnolia Park Cemetery (205 S Pleasant Hill Rd, Warner Robins, GA 31088) at 11:00am.