Kenn L. Dixon, M.A., CDMP, APR, recently finished his sixth personally organized cycling tour. This tour covered 400-plus miles from San Antonio to Arlington, Texas, in six days. He started these cycling tours in 2015 with a group riding from Dallas to San Antonio, where the 60th General Conference Session of Seventh-day Adventists was being held at the Alamodome. Since then, he has ridden thousands of miles to promote health and raise funds for Adventist education.
“Since I am so passionate about these cycling tours and raising funds for Adventist education, many think that I had a wonderful school experience,” Dixon shared. “Actually, it is quite the opposite.”
Proudly born and raised in New Orleans, Louisiana, Dixon quickly admits that he is a fan of the New Orleans Saints football team. His parents, Gwendolyn and Landry Dixon, divorced when he was 6 years old, so he only saw his dad, a police officer at the time, two weekends a month.
Having attended several Seventh-day Adventist schools, he was surprised when he was sent home, one month into his junior year, to think about his actions. “I view it as a disagreement with administration,” Dixon says of the situation. A school official called his mom shortly afterward, asking if he was coming back, but she had already enrolled him in the local public school. For his senior year, he went to Bass Memorial Academy in Lumberton, Mississippi.
That year made quite an impression on him, especially “Miss Webb,” his English teacher. “She was an amazing teacher,” Dixon remembers. “She was battle cancer but was still willing to pour into us. I was a leader and had my own opinions, always speaking up about something, but she was willing to work with me. I believe she passed away a few years after we left.”
Dixon joined the school basketball team but felt fearless in gymnastics. He fondly remembers the coach at the time, Joe Perrone, introducing him to an Olympic coach in Mobile, Alabama, during one of their gymnastic tours. “The guy almost jumped out of his seat when he saw my round back flip,” Dixon recalls. “He said I was good enough to train for the 1996 Olympics.” Dixon’s mom did not agree, as it would require training seven days a week, eight hours a day. That interfered with her plans for him to go to college.
There was no question where Dixon would go. “My mom went to Oakwood College, now Oakwood University,” Dixon states. “My brother was there, so it was expected for me to be there, as well.”
Unfortunately, Dixon wasn’t focused. With a 1.5 GPA following his first year, his mom suggested he return home to get his act together. “She wasn’t paying all that money for me to mess around,” he remembers.
Ironically, when he returned home, he took a job mentoring young people and figuring out what they wanted to do. It was eye-opening for them and him, so he returned to Oakwood the next year to continue his studies, which focused on physical therapy. However, the money ran out, so he could no longer continue at Oakwood. He feels fortunate, though, to have met his future wife, Catherine, a nursing student, while there.
Wanting to follow in the footsteps of his dad, who later worked for the FBI, Dixon tried to join the police force. Unfortunately, they required a degree and many candidates were ex-military, so he decided to join the Marines—primary O341 infantry.
“Initially, I was the guy who dropped the missiles in the tubes,” Dixon shares, “then I transferred to security forces, protecting assets involving national security.”
He and Catherine were married during his first year in the Marines, with him wearing his dress blues. She graduated the next year.
After three years in the Marines, Dixon felt the Lord calling him to do something different. He moved to Georgia, where his wife worked as a nurse at the VA (Veteran’s Affairs) hospital. He fondly remembers the plaque the Marines gave him that declared him “Cool under pressure.”
Shortly after returning home, Dixon had shoulder surgery. “I still remember trying to navigate our stick shift vehicle with one arm,” he recalls. A year later, he started teaching physical education part-time at a local school while also teaching gymnastics, tumbling and cheerleading at a city recreation center. By this time, they had three small children: Christopher, Kiera and Khari.
The next chapter took the Dixon family to Michigan, where he assisted in public campus ministry. “I am proud of the outstanding work completed on the public universities all around the state of Michigan,” Dixon shares about that time. “We launched what is now known as GYC.”
Mount Vernon, Ohio, became their next home, where Dixon became the boys’ dean of Mount Vernon Academy. “It was a great opportunity to mentor the next generation,” he shares.
Two years later he left to finish his education, taking 16 hours online simultaneously from Andrews University in Berrien Springs, Michigan, and Columbia Union College, now Washington Adventist University, in Takoma Park, Maryland. After two years, he graduated from Columbia Union College with a religion and theology degree. “Completing in two years was a miracle,” Dixon recalls, “but the bigger miracle was that the government paid for my religious degree, which was unheard of at that time.”
He fondly remembers serving as the youth pastor for the Ephesus Seventh-day Adventist Church in Columbus, Ohio. “There were a lot of firsts there,” he recalls. “I was the first youth pastor for the Allegheny West Conference [of Seventh-day Adventists in Columbus, Ohio]. We started the first youth church and had the largest Wednesday night prayer meeting for young people, by offering pizza. Our youth church had a youth board, which was modeled on the main church board. It was an awesome experience!”
“I remember Kenn serving as assistant pastor of the Columbus Ephesus Seventh-day Adventist Church,” shared William T. Cox, executive director for the Regional Retirement Plan, who was the senior pastor at that time. “As a former military man, he was very effective in sharing Jesus to young and old. He was always willing to do whatever needed to be done with a self-motivated spirit. I enjoyed our time together and appreciated the gifts and talents he brought to the table. He is an asset wherever he goes.”
Next God led the Dixon family to Greater Boston Academy (previously a Kindergarten-12 school) in Stoneham, Massachusetts, where Kenn was chaplain and Bible teacher. He also taught technology using Apple products. While in the Southern New England Conference, he was able to be an education evangelist, preaching about Adventist education to churches throughout the conference. “It wasn’t until I was older that I realized the value of my Adventist education and the sacrifices made on my behalf,” Dixon shares, “so it was an honor to share my experiences.”
“At one church, I was amazed at how many youth came forward, wanting to attend the local Seventh-day Adventist high school,” he recalls. “I think it doubled the enrollment.” Other highlights included having his own children in the same school where he taught, leading a mission trip to the Dominican Republic and encouraging people to give $52 a week, which raised about $62,000 for Adventist education.
Continuing his work with young people, he headed south to join the Southwest Region Conference of Seventh-day Adventists (SWRC) in Dallas, Texas, as a youth pastor for Dallas City Temple Seventh-day Adventist Church. During his years at the SWRC, he became the communication director for the conference and then transferred to Casalita Drive Seventh-day Adventist Church, where he served as senior pastor and was ordained into ministry.
This is where his cycling tours began. Struggling with military injuries, Dixon was limited in what he could do for exercise, so he tried cycling following a health scare. With the 2015 General Conference Session coming up, someone suggested he organize a cycling tour, and thus began Tour de Youth, now referred to as Determined Cycling.
In 2017, Dixon transitioned to Oakwood University in Huntsville, Alabama, as director of integrated marketing and public relations. During his time there, he worked for Kisha Norris, now Texas Conference vice president for Education, who at that time worked for Oakwood University. The two were colleagues when Dixon organized two cycling tour fundraisers for Oakwood University.
“Kenn is an energetic and enthusiastic worker,” Norris shares. “His knowledge of marketing and public relations was a great asset to us at Oakwood, which is why we knew we needed him to join our team. Working with Kenn was a breath of fresh air, because he would take a small idea and make it into something that would have a lasting impact on our work in the Advancement office. It was my pleasure to be his boss and colleague in the work for Oakwood University.”
Patrice T. Conwell, APR, a communications professor for Oakwood University at the time, challenged Dixon to pursue additional training while he was there. “Many of us have talents that translate into work areas, but talent shouldn’t take the place of training,” Conwell states. “I admire Kenn for excusing my audacity, as a PR educator and practitioner, in challenging him to learn the craft of public relations. Achieving his accreditation in public relations (APR) is a major accomplishment and credit to his dedication to giving his best.”
In addition to his APR, Dixon completed his Master of Arts in Pastoral Studies (MAPS), with a concentration in Church Development, while working at Oakwood. “It gave me a sense of pride to finish a degree at the school where I started my higher education,” he shared. Dixon had already completed a master’s degree in New Media Journalism. “I never wanted to be a traditional pastor,” he shares. “I liked the way one could mirror ministry and technology together.” COVID-19 has required many pastors to adopt a similar mindset.
In the fall of 2019, Dixon started his ministry work at the Texas Conference of Seventh-day Adventists in Alvarado, Texas, as vice president for Communication & Public Relations.
“Kenn is one of the top public relations persons in the North American Division of Seventh-day Adventists,” Texas Conference President Elton DeMoraes shared. “We are very blessed to have him leading the Communication & Public Relations department at the Texas Conference. Kenn is a servant leader, one who leads as a way of serving others. When the pandemic hit, through his knowledge and skills, we quickly connected with our staff, members, churches and schools using media and technology. His passion and dedication are contagious, and it is a joy to work with him.”
In the two and half years he has worked at the Texas Conference, he has transformed the office worship area into a studio that broadcasts all over the world. He organized two cycling tours, raising more than $150,000. The eventual $1.5 million fund will provide scholarships for those who want a Christian education at a Texas Conference school but need additional financial assistance.
Always wanting to stay up to date on the latest technology, Dixon has become a Certified Digital Marketing Professional. The Public Relations Society of America, of which he has held leadership roles for the Dallas chapter, calls him for quotes as to why he pursued his APR.
Considered a mentor to Dixon, Kevin Lampe, from the strategic communications firm Kurth Lampe Worldwide, shared: “Kenn Dixon possess two key qualities of a leader: the ability to listen and the confidence to ask questions. Kenn understands that leadership requires a friendly and open ear. He also knows that it is vital to ask all questions, even those that are difficult and challenging. I admire his intellectual curiosity. This trait has led him to learn more in his life—whether as a son, husband, father, pastor. And in his role with the church now, Kenn is an example for all to follow. I am humbled to have served as his mentor.”
It is interesting to see how God has led his journey. Even though it has been a winding road, each step along the way has given him the knowledge and experience to thrive in what he does today.
When asked how he would like to be remembered, Dixon shared: “That I love people. That I love the gospel. That I love Jesus. And I love cycling for Adventist education.”
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Tamara Michalenko Terry is an associate director for Texas Conference Communication & Public Relations. Encouraged by Dixon, she is studying to complete her APR (Accreditation in Public Relations).
A condensed version of this article appeared in the Southwestern Union Record May/June 2022 issue. You can view it here.
