- May 4, 2024
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Gary Hutchens was drafted into the U.S. Army at the age of 22. He was supposed to be a truck driver, but due to the extra knowledge and administrative skills he brought with him to the Army as an older draftee, he was assigned as what he referred to as the “Radar O’Reilly” of his unit. His first post was at Fort Knox, Kentucky. While there, scenes of the James Bond movie “Gold Finger” were filmed on the post. Hutchens and others were selected as extras in which they were to lie down and pretend they were dead after an aircraft flyover dispersed poison.
His next assignment was in Germany, where he had a NATO secret clearance and clerked for the first sergeant. After honorably serving his country, Hutchens returned home to Detroit and worked for the Ford Motor Company in paint operations. He left Detroit and worked for British singer-songwriter Roger Whittaker as a member of his staff for 20 years traveling throughout the U.S. and Canada.
Hutchens also traveled with the U.S. Olympic hockey team as a merchandise promotor in 1988, '92 and '93, as the teams practiced and played exhibitions games around the country. He moved to Florida in 1992 and worked special events at the World Golf Hall of Fame when it was in St. Augustine. Hutchens finally retired to Palm Coast in 2002. He is a lifetime member of the Disabled American Veterans, Chapter 86, and he was recently selected as their Volunteer of the Year.
