
Lessons in Service
by Mike Halas, Hackley Class of 1998
Thank you very much to Margie Ford ’85 and Suzy Akin for asking me to share my “Perspective” regarding Hackley’s impact on my military experience. It is both humbling to share with the Hackley community and terrifying as I know Mrs. Siviglia and Dr. Robinson will read my prose and storytelling. (Literally just changed the previous sentence from passive to active voice….)
It was a classic Chicago autumn Saturday — cold, rainy, overcast, windy. I took my daughter out for a run in the jog stroller. It is important to my wife and me that we demonstrate for Monroe behaviors that will help her build the skills she needs to be successful. Which isn’t necessarily a gloomy run in the rain in shorts and a Chicago Bears winter hat, but it may come in handy one day.
As we turned west out of the driveway and into an easterly headwind, the rain stung our faces — not quite icy, but frigidly close — she asked, “Daddy, why we are we running in the rain?”
“Great question, Sweet Pea.”
My “Ah hah” moment came about a dozen puddles later.
Not long after my Hackley Commencement Day 21 years ago, I donned a US Army uniform for the first time, pledged my oath to country and countrymen, and began training to become an officer in the US Army. Four years of ROTC training and 17 years of combined active duty, National Guard, and US Army Reserve later, the reality of a career’s twilight seems much more relevant than its dawn.
With more than half my life in military service, the vantage point of how Hackley prepared me for the challenges of leadership and command becomes more obvious. While the Army may use different terms — and a lot of acronyms — our values are the same. We care about each other; we push each other to improve; we expose ourselves at personal risk to always do the right thing for the benefit of others.
Now, there is great importance in preparing one’s self to execute tasks in less than ideal conditions, as not every situation presents optimally. But most important, especially as leaders, is the significance of consistently demonstrating the qualities you wish others to adopt.
“Enter Here to Be and Find a Friend,” “United We Help,” and “Go Forth and Spread Beauty and Light” is how Hackley lives.
We live “growing in character,” “offering unreserved effort,” and “learning from varying backgrounds and perspectives.” From our first day on the Hilltop to the day we are memorialized at Alumni Day, we live these charges. And each of us plays a part in “ A Winning Tradition.”
In my own Hackley journey, I distinctly remember when I was an underclassman how hard the senior athletes worked in the weight room, at practice, and, ultimately, on the field. Extra hours before and after school, extra repetitions; this personal and individual responsibility forged strong, collective bonds allowing the group to succeed in competition — most important, and obvious, when facing adversity together.
And it’s not just the athletes, as Hackley encourages diverse participation. I saw, as member of the Board of Magistrates, the dedication of my Community Council classmates, as well as that of my fellow “Rehearsal for Murder” cast members in my peripheral and very forgettable role as the moving man, “Santoro.”
They learned from those before them. We learned from them. Those after learned from us. And so it continues.
Just as “Enter to be…,” “United we…,” and “Go forth…” bedrock the Hackley experience, so does “Follow Me” within the US Army Infantry, “Rangers Lead The Way” at Army Ranger School and in the 75th Ranger Regiment, working “by, with, and through” our partner forces as the Green Berets strive to “De Oppresso Liber.”
In the summer Georgia woods among the fire ants, we built skills: combat, tactical and interpersonal. During these early officer crucibles, we trained together in small teams rotating through leadership and led, because to know both is critical. We focused on “executing the basics,” “standards,” and “ doing routine tasks uncommonly well.” Although rigidly hierarchical, it was never about the authority, the status, or the rank.
The lessons focused on understanding just how challenging the profession of soldiery really is. To understand what you are asking of someone — someone’s son, daughter, father, mother, brother, sister — you have to live that challenge. You have to feel the weight of a ruck-sack on day 8 of a 10-day patrol. And, you have to feel how just how strong you can be when you must pull your wounded Ranger buddy out of the line of fire.
On Veterans Day in particular, I reflect on the value of these lessons, in large ways and small. Because the lessons of loyalty, personal responsibility, honor, and integrity apply to every facet of life.
As a Green Beret Commander in Afghanistan, my captains and I worked shoulder to shoulder to combat advise our Afghan Special Forces partners. We ate, slept, and fought “shona ba shona.” It was not enough to explain the right things. We had to live the behavior we wanted to teach — always mindful of consistency in word and deed.
Now a senior adviser to entrepreneurs and executives, foundations and endowments, as well as individuals and families, these values serve as my foundation for these trusted and fiduciary relationships.
I am grateful for the ethos Hackley instilled in me to value character and unreserved effort. And, most important, on Veterans Day, I reflect on the memory of my friends and those who went before us.
I am grateful I had the opportunity to watch, to learn from, and emulate a great group of Hackley students. Equally, I appreciate the opportunity Hackley provided that allowed me to serve as a role model for those who came after me.

And a dozen puddles later…this is why I take my daughter running in the rain. In facing discomfort, together. In pushing through it, together. In succeeding and failing, together. We grow stronger, together. We affirm the knowledge that together, we can get through anything.
And in the spirit of “United We Help One Another,” Suzy Akin told me about another Hackley motto, one I had not known before: “Whose Service is Perfect Freedom.” The perfect freedom is our own decision to help others because it is what we know we should do. We know we should do it because that is what what learned. That is what Hackley taught us and that is what Hackley and our community demonstrates. It is our identity.

Mike Halas, Hackley Class of 1998, was a cadet in US Army ROTC at The Johns Hopkins University and served three combat deployments. In 2017 he deployed again in command of B Company, 5th Battalion, 19th Special Forces Group (Airborne). Mike earned Master in Public Administration at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government and a Master of Arts in Intelligence Studies from American Military University. He is a director on the Hackley Alumni Association and founder and current chair of the Hackley Veterans’ Association. He currently works at Goldman, Sachs & Co. Mike, Corrie, and their daughter, Monroe, live in Winnetka, IL.

