Dr. & Mrs. Michael Sisson and Family

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The Biography of Dr. Michael Sisson

In the building of any one life, the big picture is made up of many smaller pieces. As each piece is added, we may not know why it is there until that big picture becomes more obvious. Then we see that each piece is needful. Dr. Sisson's life is no exception to this. Many unusual pieces have gone into the making of his life; and now we, who can see more of the big picture, can understand why it was necessary for God to add the little pieces as He did.

Michael Sisson was born on December 22, 1947. He was the youngest of four children. When he was only two weeks old, his father left his family. They never heard from him again. In order to support the family, his mother, Gaila, went to work in a garment factory. During this time, Michael's uncle stepped in and had a big influence on the boys. Eight and a half years later, Gaila remarried. Coleman Smith was, in Dr. Sisson's words, "an honest, hard-working farmer."

At the age of 16, Michael went to a revival service at the New Hope Baptist Church in Fayette County, Alabama. During the invitation, he went to the altar, where te preacher, Brother Raiford Rice, led him through the plan of salvation, and Michael was saved. Brother Rice later told him that he had prayed for Michael's salvation every day for the previous two years.

Just two years later, at the age of 18, Michael joined the Marines, and on March 1, 1967, he arrived for boot camp at Parris Island, South Carolina. He completed basic training the following June and went home on leave to marry his sweetheart, Karey Hinton. The two moved to Beaufort, S.C., where he was stationed for three years and achieved the rank of sergeant.

In 1974, the Sissons and 2 other couples came to Pastors' School upon the suggestion of their own pastor. It was here that Michael acknowledged the call of God on his life. That following August, the Sissons (now with the addition of one child) packed their belongings and came to Indiana, where he enrolled as a Pastoral Theology major in Hyles-Anderson College. He finished his degree in the summer of 1977, and marched in May of 1978.

In August of 1977, Michael became the Assistant to the Principal of Hammond Baptist Grade School under Dr. Robert Auclair. His duties were many, including cutting the grass and acting as the crossing guard. In his words, he "did whatever needed to be done."

In May of 1987, during the graduation ceremony at Hyles-Anderson College, Dr. Jack Hyles awarded him with an honorary Doctorate of Humanities. How fitting for a man who has dedicated his life to working with children.

Dr. Sisson is entering 32 years at Hammond Baptist Grade School. We can now see more of that big picture which his life has become. Each little piece has been important. As a child in a single-parent home, he learned much about compassion and what some children must go through. From his working mother, he learned tenacity. From his stepfather, he learned the value of hard work and honesty. While in the Marine Corps, he learned about discipline and dependability; and (true to the Marine reputation), he learned a tenderness for children that only comes through true stength. At Hyles-Anderson College, he was given the tools for the ministry, and in his early career here at Hammond Baptist Grade School, he became an expert at all of the little things that need to be done to keep a school running.

Dr. and Mrs. Sisson have been married for 42 years and have three children, Steve, David and Becky and seven grandchildren. Steve is married to Tina, and he works at the Gospel Light Baptist Church in Hot Springs, Arkansas. David is married to Amy (Mattingly) and he works at the First Baptist Church of Hammond. Becky is married to Tim Petreikis who is a deacon at the First Baptist Church of Hammond.

Those of us here at the Hammond Baptist Schools are thankful for Dr. Sisson. We are grateful for the work that he does and the leadership he provides. We are grateful to God for providing the little pieces that have been placed in the big picture of Dr. Sisson's life.