Benjamin T. Hacker | |
---|---|
Born | Washington, D.C., US | September 19, 1935
Died | December 28, 2003 Norfolk, Virginia, US | (aged 68)
Place of burial | |
Allegiance | United States of America |
Service/ | United States Navy |
Years of service | 1958–1988 |
Rank | Rear Admiral (UH) |
Commands held | US Naval Facility Barbados, WI NROTC Florida A & M University Patrol Squadron 24 (VP-24) NAS Brunswick, Maine USMEPCOM COMFAIRMED COMARSURVRECFORSIXFLT COMARAIRMED NTC San Diego Naval Base San Diego |
Awards | Defense Superior Service Medal Legion of Merit Meritorious Service Medal |
Other work | Insurance Executive (USAA) Director – CA Dept of Veterans Affairs |
Rear Admiral Benjamin Thurman Hacker (1935–2003) was a U.S. Naval officer, who became the first[1] Naval Flight Officer (NFO) to achieve Flag rank.
Hacker was born September 19, 1935, in Washington, D.C. His father, C. Leroy Hacker, was an author, Baptist pastor and a chaplain in the U.S. Army. His mother, Alzeda (Crockett) Hacker, was an accomplished musician. Of their three children, Benjamin was the eldest.
Benjamin attended Wittenberg University in Springfield, Ohio, graduating in 1957 with a B.A. Degree in Science. He married his wife, Jeanne, in 1958.
After retiring from the Navy, Rear Admiral Hacker worked at financial-services firm USAA as assistant vice president for policy service, at the organization's western regional office in Sacramento.
In the early 1990s, at the request of then-Governor Pete Wilson, Hacker served for two years as director of the California Department of Veterans Affairs and then rejoined USAA as regional vice president and general manager of its western region. He moved to San Antonio in his next post in December 1995.
Hacker also held posts as Regional Senior Vice President/General Manager in the company's Mid-Atlantic Region[10] headquartered in Norfolk, Virginia. Rear Admiral Hacker retired from USAA in 1998 but continued to serve on various local and national boards.
On December 28, 2003, Rear Admiral Hacker[11] died from complications relating to chronic lymphocytic leukemia, a disease which he battled for 12 years. He was buried at Arlington National Cemetery.[12]