On Monday, April 3, 2023, John Alvin Sikes, formerly of Little Cypress, loving husband and father, passed away at the age of 86.

Funeral service will be held at 2:00 p.m., Saturday, April 15, 2023, Watson & Sons Funeral Home in Center.

Born September 16, 1936 in El Campo, Texas, John was raised on the family farm where he lived with his parents John and Rosa Rooker Sikes and sister Maureen Sikes Baker until they moved to Port Arthur around 1940. John attended Thomas Jefferson High School in Port Arthur, graduating in 1954. He went on attend Lamar University in Beaumont, majoring in geology.

High school sweethearts, John met wife Margaret Massey Sikes while the two were just teenagers. Their love for each other would last a lifetime, celebrating 68 years of marriage.

John was a handy mechanic, often working on everything from car engines to appliances and anything that needed repair.  He collected many tools over the years, including those he inherited from his father.

John was also a self-taught carpenter, building decks from the ground up for his home in Little Cypress. Multiple hurricanes came and went during their years there, with many trees falling victim to the storms, but John’s well- built decks held firm through all of it.

As a young man, John worked at a variety of places in Port Arthur including Plettman’s Grocery, Holsum Bakery and also Sears as a shoe salesman. He then worked for Gulf Oil and Jefferson Chemical, eventually making his way to Firestone Chemical where he worked for more than 30 years as a skilled serviceman. While there, John also served as Union Steward and retired in 1995. Having spent his formative years on a farm in Texas, John grew up with a love of the land and always dreamed of becoming a farmer himself. Their move to Little Cypress in 1974 was a lifelong dream come true, where Dad purchased 33 acres of land. After buying a vintage tractor which John promptly restored into working order, he began what was to be his biggest hobby and passion — cutting grass, clearing brush and tilling the soil, all while sitting proudly atop that tractor.

John also had a love for music, taking piano lessons at an early age. Later as a young married man, two of John’s first purchases were a piano and a stereo system for his collection of LPs. From 50s rock-and-roll to country music, John enjoyed playing his records for friends and family. 

During their younger years, John and wife Margaret owned several AKC German Shepherd dogs whose pups went on to live out lives as service dogs and police narcotics dogs. It was a frequent site to see John on his tractor, followed by one or more of his dogs faithfully following him along.

John enjoyed watching baseball on TV, mowing the grass, and spending time in his garage. After retiring to Belton, TX, John bequeathed his tractor and his land to grandson James, ensuring that a love of the land was passed down yet again to the next generation. 

John is preceded in death by Victoria Jo Enmon, his much-beloved granddaughter; sister Maureen Sikes Baker; and John Herman Sikes and Rosa Rooker Sikes, parents.

In addition to wife Margaret, John is survived by daughter Elaine Sikes Jackson and son-in-law Mike of Belton; daughter Jo Ellen Sikes Enmon and son-in-law Victor of College Station; and daughter Karen Sikes Heitman and son-in-law Tim of Aubrey, TX. 

Grandchildren include: Adam Jackson (wife Elisha) of Temple, TX; Jennifer Jackson Webb (and husband Spencer) of Belton, TX; James Enmon (and wife Stormy) of Vidor, TX; Christin Enmon Hommel (and husband Justin) of Katy, TX; namesake John Stone (and fiance’ Mehgan) of Little Elm, TX; and Samantha Stone Garcia (husband Paul) of Dallas, TX.

Great-grandchildren include: McKenzie Jackson, Kayleigh Jackson, Jackson Webb, Addison Webb, Corbin Hommel, Adilyn Hommel and Kenzee Krikland.

Pallbearers will be James Enmon, Justin Hommel, Adam Jackson, Spencer Webb, John Stone, Paul Garcia, and Kevin Fuller. Honorary pallbearers will be Jackson Webb and Corbin Hommel. Online condolences & tributes can be sent at www.watsonandsonsfh.com