Spotlight: Bill Connell and Gerald Hackemack
Friends and C-SC alums Bill Connell ’91 and Gerald Hackemack ’89 talk life, friendship and the Hill for this Alumni Spotlight double feature.
“We met at the River Valley Golf Course in Canton, Mo.,” explains Bill. “I watched him drop five balls into the water, bad swing after bad swing. I decided to give him a hard time about his performance and we have been friends ever since. Gerald and I were in each other’s weddings and have spent a lot of time together. Anytime my family is close to Chicago, we look him up and he does the same in Quincy. He is a true friend thru thick and thin that I know would stand by my side. It all started on the Hill at C-SC.”
Bill Connell ’91 has been married to his wife Jayme for 16 years. The couple lives in Quincy, Ill., where Bill serves as athletic director and head football coach for Quincy Notre Dame High School. Bill enjoys the opportunity his job gives him to interact with young people and hopes to continue building a successful QND athletic program. “My future career goals are to win a state football championship and to make sure all QND athletic teams are competitive.”
Today, Bill frequently tells others about his Culver-Stockton experience. “It’s a close-knit community that I still cherish. Being able to speak to Dr. Brown, Dr. Reuling and Dean Hansmeier made you feel special and like they cared. I also enjoyed representing C-SC, head football coach Dr. Dick Lemke and teammates such as Tom Lens, Kevin Wiley and Aaron Heeg on the football field on Saturday afternoons.”
Gerald Hackemack ’89 is loving life with his wife, Lisa, and two children, daughter Josey, 9, and son Luke, 6. The Hackemack family lives Lake of the Hills in northern Illinois. When he’s not busy with his family, Gerald serves as regional sales manager for the Western US for Bulk-Pack, Inc. He says it’s the variety in his work that he enjoys the most, “Everyday is different and presents a new challenge, in addition to the various people and parts of the country I visit.”
Originally from Warsaw, Ill., Gerald says Culver-Stockton helped prepare him for success in life and in his career. “Culver-Stockton was a nice transition with its manageable class sizes, as well as the attention from the professors.” Gerald made many close friends during his time at C-SC, including Bill.
