MADISON, S.D. (Dakota News Now) – A new baseball tournament began Friday in Madison, with 16 Senior Legion teams competing through Sunday in honor of Ken Prorok, a sheriff’s deputy and baseball coach who was killed in the line of duty in 2024.
His wife, Renee Prorok, said she wants her husband remembered for his impact on young players rather than the circumstances of his death.
Ken was not just a deputy, right? That’s how he died, but I don’t think that’s how we want him remembered either,” Renee Prorok said. “So, we remember him as a coach mentoring kids. There were a lot of kids that he coached over the years who continue to be in our lives now as well. So, I want Ken to be remembered as the coach, the mentor, just someone who was there for the kids on and off the field.”
The tournament includes two scholarships in Prorok’s name that will be awarded to students either studying law enforcement or playing baseball in college.
The Prorok family continues to process both his loss and the subsequent legal proceedings, but this tournament gives them the chance to step back and enjoy the game he loved so much.
“Today is kind of a mixed emotion day, because there was a hearing this morning for the individual who killed my husband,” said Renee Prorok. “So we don’t know the outcome. But the high part of it is people coming together and sharing memories of Ken, and it’s just, it’s a special weekend.”
For his son JD, it’s the opportunity to continue to make his father proud and advance in the sport that they spent so much time on.
“There’s many life lessons and honestly, the ones that stuck with me the most are kind of the butt chewings,” said JD. “You know, you need to do this, you need to do that. At the end of the day, whenever he was yelling at you, pushing you to be better, you knew that he cared for you and that he wanted the best for you.”
Organizers and the Madison community said they hope the tournament continues in future years so that Prorok’s legacy can live on and community members can continue to support the scholarship.
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