(UPDATE) West Point mayor, veteran Kilgo, 61, dies

Published 8:33 pm Monday, February 18, 2019

West Point Mayor Kenneth Kilgo, 61, an Army veteran and 15-year member of the town council died early Monday morning.

Kilgo began serving on the West Point Town Council in 2004 and in 2016 took the oath of office for his third term as mayor.

Longtime friend and former mayor and associate county commissioner Wayne Willingham said Kilgo had been undergoing medical treatment for several conditions since late November.

“He initially was looking at having a hip replacement, but several other problems were found,” Willingham said. “He followed me as mayor and did a lot of good work for West Point. He always had the best intentions in everything he did. This was his home town and he worked with the council to get a lot done, like the widening of the road to help the school traffic, and we have new businesses now.”

Willingham said Kilgo had an outstanding military career in the Army, from serving as a drill sergeant to working in Europe in intelligence work. He also remembered Kilgo’s sense of humor, noting he used to mention being a movie star.

“He was actually in a movie in the 1990s in a movie called Son In Law with Pauly Shore. There was a scene where military personnel were involved, so he used to talk about his royalty check, which was $5 or $6,” Willingham said.

Kilgo was lifetime member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 2214 in Cullman, where his Army career was well know to fellow member retired Air Force Col. Ken Brown.

“Kenneth worked through NATO in the Bosnian Civil War and was involved on the international level in arms control across Eastern Europe,” Brown said. “A lot of our veterans have done a lot of things they never talk about or that others didn’t know about, and Kenneth is one of those. He was involved in a lot of important missions for our country.”

Kilgo retired as a sergeant major, spending the last half of his career in Europe.

A Facebook page, Warriors for Kenneth, announced his death Monday morning, noting that the mayor had experienced kidney failure. Kilgo’s daughter, Nicolette, is returning from England where she is studying at Oxford University. Funeral arrangements are expected to be announced after her return.

“Kenneth was just a great guy. He did a lot of good for his country and gave a lot back to his community, not just to West Point but all over Cullman County through the mayors’ association. He was always very active in helping others and the other towns,” Brown said.

Kilgo was also a candidate for the Alabama House of Representatives during his political career. He was also active in the Thomas Jefferson Denney Camp 1442 of the Sons of Confederate Veterans.