Photo was taken in May 2012. President Obama was in Newton, Iowa visiting TPI Composites, a manufacturer of wind-turbine blades.
The man's name is Archie Hackney. He was born in Newton on Sept. 18, 1921, the youngest of nine children. At 19 he hitchhiked to Davenport to help assemble military equipment for Rock Island Arsenal. He received his draft notice in August 1942, and went on to serve three years in the United States Army, including 13 months as part of a bomb disposal unit on Bougainville Island.
After returning home, he worked for 35 years in a machine shop in Newton, and then two years for a window factory after the machine shop closed down. As a boy, he was an accomplished boxer; in 1938, at the age of 16, he was invited to take part in the first Golden Gloves event ever held in Iowa. In his retirement, he was an avid coin collector and wood carver; his favorite past time, however, was coaching little league baseball.
He married Margery Hallam in 1946, with whom he had one daughter.
Sadly, Archie Hackney passed away in January 2014, at the age of 92. President Obama was the first sitting President he had the chance to meet.
KathlynSchwein on June 24th, 2020 at 21:13 UTC »
On one hand, it hurts to stand. On the other, he's the president. Stuck between Barack and a hard place.
SlightPickle on June 24th, 2020 at 21:14 UTC »
He’s got that Captain America energy. Stay seated? “No, I don’t think I will.”
gingmcc on June 24th, 2020 at 21:14 UTC »
Photo was taken in May 2012. President Obama was in Newton, Iowa visiting TPI Composites, a manufacturer of wind-turbine blades.
The man's name is Archie Hackney. He was born in Newton on Sept. 18, 1921, the youngest of nine children. At 19 he hitchhiked to Davenport to help assemble military equipment for Rock Island Arsenal. He received his draft notice in August 1942, and went on to serve three years in the United States Army, including 13 months as part of a bomb disposal unit on Bougainville Island.
After returning home, he worked for 35 years in a machine shop in Newton, and then two years for a window factory after the machine shop closed down. As a boy, he was an accomplished boxer; in 1938, at the age of 16, he was invited to take part in the first Golden Gloves event ever held in Iowa. In his retirement, he was an avid coin collector and wood carver; his favorite past time, however, was coaching little league baseball.
He married Margery Hallam in 1946, with whom he had one daughter.
Sadly, Archie Hackney passed away in January 2014, at the age of 92. President Obama was the first sitting President he had the chance to meet.