Each year, Carthage alumni are asked to submit their nominations for the Distinguished Alumni Awards. After extensive deliberations, the Alumni Council selects the recipients.
2008 Distinguished Alumni Award Recipients
Nancy (Weiner) Hackbarth
Nancy (Weiner) Hackbarth, ’71, Fond du Lac,
Wis., will receive a Distinguished Alumni Achievement Award.
Mrs. Hackbarth is a third generation educator. She spent 25 years teaching at the elementary level. In 1991, she was chosen as Teacher of the Year for the New Holstein School District and Northeast Wisconsin’s Favorite Teacher. During her time in the classroom, she was selected to “Who’s Who Among American Teachers,” served as a National Aeronautics and Space Administration educational liaison for the Lewis Research Center and was selected for a NASA Educational Workshop for Elementary School Teachers.
In 1994, Mrs. Hackbarth earned her master’s degree in educational administration from Marian College. Two years later, she moved to the Fond du Lac School District, where she served as principal of Rosenow Elementary School for nine years. In 2004, she was selected as Wisconsin’s Elementary Principal of the Year and recognized as a Nationally Distinguished Principal in Washington, D.C.
Mrs. Hackbarth is currently the Four-Year-Old Kindergarten Coordinator for the Fond du Lac School District, an adjunct staff member at Marian College and Norda, Inc., and a member of Kappa Delta Pi. She served on the board of directors for the Fond du Lac YMCA, and presently serves on the board of the Fond du Lac Children’s Museum.
Nancy and her husband Dave, ’71, serve as Torchbearers for Carthage. They have one son and a daughter-in-law, Aaron Hackbarth, ’02, and Ellen (Addington) Hackbarth, ’06.
Peter Martin
Peter Martin, ’77, Grand Rapids, Mich., will receive a Distinguished Alumni Achievement Award.
Mr. Martin has been president, CEO, and part owner of Knape & Vogt Company, a manufacturer of hardware for the woodworking industry, since July 2006. Prior to that, Peter was president and CEO of The Holmes Group, a manufacturer and marketer of small electrical appliances; and a group president at Newell Rubbermaid, a diversified manufacturer and marketer of consumer products.
Mr. Martin earned a master of business administration degree from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. He has 30 years of experience in manufacturing environments, and more than 20 years of experience in consumer products. He lived in Europe for three years, and has been heavily involved in Asian sourcing for the last 10 years. During his career, Peter has been exposed to diverse channels of distribution, including mass merchants, various original equipment manufacturers, distribution, and office dealers.
Mr. Martin and his wife, Nancy, have four children, Ashley, Jordan, Colin, and Tanner.
June (Boatman) Waller
June (Boatman) Waller, ’63, Champaign, Ill., will receive a Distinguished Alumni Service Award.
Mrs. Waller and her twin sister, Joann (Boatman) Kilgus, ’63, grew up in Murphysboro, Ill., where their father, the Rev. William Boatman, was a Lutheran pastor. Their uncle, Archie O. Boatman, was a professor of mathematics at the College. Pastor Boatman received an honorary doctorate from Carthage in 1941.
Mrs. Waller is a member of the Board of Trustees, and chairman of the Fine Arts Advisory Committee. She is a trustee of the Franklin and Irene List Saemann Foundation, which has made several gifts to the College, including the Curriculum Resource Center in the Hedberg Library.
Mrs. Waller taught for 22 years in three Illinois communities: Lombard, Murphysboro and Charleston. She taught fifth and sixth grades with an emphasis on reading, language arts and social studies.
Mrs. Waller served on the Charleston (Ill.) Public Library Board for more than 25 years. She is a member of Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Champaign, and the Champaign/Urbana Symphony Guild.
Mrs. Waller’s husband, Ashton, served for many years as a circuit judge in Coles County, Ill. They have two children, Katherine (Waller) Kauffman, ’96, and Jonathan.
