Albert Hacker

Albert E. Hacker passed away on Saturday afternoon, February 23, 2019, with family by his side. It was a beautiful moment for us to share with him, despite the struggles of his physical body. As another day ended, a new day began for Al in heaven, we are overjoyed, regardless of the sadness we are enduring.The best way we can honor him is to articulate who he was and attempt to sum up a life of a man who was "The Man, the Myth and the Legend"..... in so many ways!A WARRIOR… a teacher… a man of conviction… They say that what most people will know about us is "the date of arrival and the date of departure", it's what you do with the hyphen in the middle that matters. Well, his hyphen was in bold font! He arrived June 29, 1945 ——– and left 73 years, 7 months and 25 days later."A man's life is defined, mostly, by his values and his passions"...and it helps explain his hyphen!He was an original. Fierce in his love for his Country and his Family...in that order.He was tenacious, ferocious, intense, focused and fueled to be his own man. Everything he did was an adventure. He had big vision, and always swung for the fences. A veteran, an entrepreneur, developer and "international man of mystery", he was an enigma. When God created Al, he broke the mold.He was a true force of nature, a "bear" of a man. He was also gentle and loving...and provided a safe place when the world was overwhelming.He lived his life to the fullest and was loved by many- a man of great principle with a passion for this great country. As a veteran, he was a patriot that teared up when he saw a flag, his love for country so great!He made impossible things happen. He was resolute, persevering and steadfast in his convictions and dedicated his life to becoming a better person every day.Today we celebrate a great man - Albert E. Hacker - a son, a father, a step-father, a grandfather, a life partner, a brother, an uncle and a best friend. We will remember his love for music, "shuckin' and jivin"' to his favorite tunes, an adventurer, a wanderer, a giver, a protector.He gave something different to each of us, and as complex a man as he was, the world simply could not contain him. We were lucky, each of us a knew a different facet, and we came to see a greater whole, as we attended his last days on earth with him. We know more now, through sharing the simple things he did for others, no one ever knew. So, we are grateful for his wisdom, humor, loyalty, understanding, patience and love.His last days were not easy, a man who was fiercely independent, depending on others to care for him. Having been in control, he was not giving up on life until the very end. He was ready to get out of that bed and go on an adventure. His dependence softened him and gave us new insight to his soul's presence.He approached death believing he was ready to live and is now unfettered. We will always love you and are blessed to have experienced your presence in life!