Gregory Hacker

Gregory Hacker fondly remembers his days at the Limestone County Boys & Girls Club when he was a youth.

He spent plenty of time there after school and during the summer catching up on schoolwork, going on field trips and generally having a good time with his fellow classmates.

Hacker considers those days at the Boys & Girls Club important in his development. Now, many years later, the Boys & Girls Club will show Hacker they haven’t forgotten about him, as he will be inducted into the Boys & Girls Club of North Alabama’s Alumni Hall of Fame during the 2019 Leaders and Legends Dinner July 18.

The Leaders and Legends is one of the area’s largest fundraising events, and will feature NFL Hall of Fame quarterback Brett Favre as its keynote speaker this year.

Hacker, who attended the Limestone County Boys & Girls Club from 1999-2004, is one of two inductees into the hall of fame this year. The selections are made by a leadership committee within the organization. Criteria for induction is having spent five or more years in the club and a large amount of community involvement.

Hacker said he still remembers how much fun he had on the field trips to the city pool and Skate Castle and said it was an important part of his life.

“It was an opportunity for me to go out and be able to do things and interact with other people from around the area,” Hacker said. “In the summertime, with my parents working full-time jobs, I was able to do those fun activities such as water parks, going to the pool, going skating and going on field trips. Things that keep you occupied and also safe.”

Hacker said his time at the Boys & Girls Club helped him develop, and he took advantage of that time to embark on a successful military career.

After graduation from the University of Alabama, Hacker commissioned into the Army and moved to Grafenwoehr, Germany for three years and traveled extensively before moving to Washington D.C.

Hacker is currently pursuing a master of science degree in information technology from the University of Maryland.

He serves as a financial management officer for the Assistant Secretary of the Army (financial management and comptroller), located at the Pentagon. He assists in the management of the Army’s investment appropriations, including procurement and research and development accounts.

Hacker said one of the most important things the Boys & Girls Club provides is mentorship. He said those who mentored him still keep in touch all these years later.

“I had several people there who followed me through the whole way,” Hacker said. “To this day, they still keep in touch with me. That kind of mentorship and support, all the way through my school years and college, and now in my own career, is special. That’s what was personally important to me.”