Kenneth Lee Ikenberry

Kenneth L Ikenberry passed away on the afternoon of Friday, March 8th.

He was born in 1941 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa to Marcia Louise and Asa Frederick Ikenberry,

who was away as a Naval officer at the time. He grew up on the outskirts of Alexandria,

Virginia, first in a housing project, “Shirley Homes”, which he talked about his entire life,

and then on Bunker Hill Road. He graduated from Mt Vernon High School, attended Bridgewater College and then transferred to George Washington University where he immediately began to work as a copyboy at the Washington Post. He spoke about that experience throughout his life, particularly his being in the newsroom during the Cuban Missile Crisis.

Ken then entered a training program at The Washington Evening Star, where he became a local reporter and then worked in various capacities, sometimes writing a column. When the Star closed in 1981, he was snapped up by the Washington Post and soon found himself in the editorial department under the late, legendary Meg Greenfield. He became the “op-ed” editor, a job in which he edited top writers and contributors, all of whom seemed to find their work improved (and usually shortened) by Ken’s editing. A great many well-known government officials and even writers praised Ken for improving the impact of the piece they had submitted to the Post. He also became known for his editorials. He was not, as such, an editorial writer, but he sat on the Editorial Board and was often called on to write editorials that commemorated a holiday (i.e. Thanksgiving when he once made fun of deep-fried turkeys). Topics over the years included Christmas, Memorial Day, or an event, or sometimes just something that came into his head, such as his column claiming that air conditioning had ruined Washington, DC.

Over a decade ago, Ken took one of the Post’s many buyouts, much to the chagrin of his boss at that time, the late Fred Hiatt, but Ken continued to write editorials on holidays and events. He agonized over those pieces, yet they appeared effortless as if he had just tossed them off.

He lived happily with his wife, “Sue” and until they grew up, his sons, Danilo and Sandip. He was found to have cancer of the appendix, but initially, chemotherapy seemed to kill it off.

Unfortunately, the cancer metastasized and finally claimed his life. Ken was a mentor to many and an extraordinarily well-liked colleague.

He leaves his immediate family, Danilo de Jesus (Ikenberry, and his wife Olivia Moore

Ikenberry and Ken’s granddaughter Violet Reyes Ikenberry. Danilo works for the

University of the District of Columbia. Son, Sandip, is currently a 4th-grade teacher in

Vietnam at the Westlink School. Ken’s wife, Susan Finan Ikenberry, teaches history at

Georgetown Day School. Ken is also survived by three siblings, Joe Ikenberry, of Ashburn, Virginia; Barbara Ikenberry Tulli, of Ashland, Virginia, and Jack Ikenberry, of Floral City, Florida. In addition, he is also survived by nephews Jacob Tulli, of Mechanicsville, Virginia, and Daniel Tulli of Moseley, Virginia, and a niece, Emily Tulli, of Takoma Park, Maryland, as well as Rick Pearson, of Ashburn, Virginia.

So many of his former colleagues have mentioned Ken as unassuming, helpful, and notably talented as a writer. Daniel Klaidman, co-author (with Michael Izikoff) of the current best-selling book Find me the Votes wrote the following tribute:

“We lost one of the best humans ever this past week. Ken Ikenberry was the gentlest of souls, who could be bitingly funny without ever being mean. He was a terrific father, husband and friend and always made you feel good when you were with him. For me, Ken was the first — and maybe most important — mentor I had in journalism. As an editor on the Washington Post editorial page, Ken made every editorial and op-ed he touched so much better, sharpening points, decluttering language, cutting with the skill of the finest surgeon. (I can still see his pencil edits on the page proofs.) He was quiet and humble, but Meg Greenfield, the brilliant and legendary editor of the editorial page, relied on Ken absolutely to get the page out every day. And while you rarely saw his bylines, his unsigned editorials were gems and among the most memorable. Meg didn’t turn to Ken to write editorials about arcane policy debates or the political dramas of the day, but rather offbeat, sometimes quirky pieces about the life of the city or the true meaning of a holiday. He had the writer’s eye for the telling detail, the ability to notice things that others didn’t, things that made you think, frequently laugh, always appreciate the humanity in a city that too often was too self-important for that sort of thing. As a writer, I would often think “how would Ken do it.” As a human being I will be asking the same question. RIP Ken and love and condolences to Sue and the kids. May his memory be a blessing.”

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you consider contributing in Ken’s name to one of

the following charities:

Humane Rescue Alliance https://www.humanerescuealliance.org/support-us

Capital Caring Health, https://capitalcaring.funraise.org/

Salaam Baalak Trust

https://www.salaambaalaktrust.com/