Every year the Quincy Exchange Club presents the Golden Deeds Award to a dedicated volunteer who gives endless hours of their time and talents toward making our community a better place to live. That award was presented today to Jack Mackenzie at a noon Golden Deeds Banquet held at the Elks Lodge in Quincy.

Mackenzie has served the community as a teacher, coach and mentor to many. Mackenzie spent 43 seasons as the head coach of the Quincy University Hawks and with 516 victories ranks 10th all-time in wins in NCAA history and third at the Division II level.

Mackenzie, the winner of nine NAIA National Championships, was inducted into the St. Louis Players Hall of Fame in 1997. In 1989, he was inducted into the NAIA Hall of Fame, and in 1979, was named to the Quincy University Sports Hall of Fame.

In his career, Mackenzie coached 31 All-Americans. He is a four-time NAIA Coach of the Year, winning in 1971, 1975, 1977 and 1981. In addition, he was named the Coach of the Year by the National Soccer Coaches Association in 1974 and the Metropolitan Life Insurance’s Midwest Region Coach of the Year in 1987. Not to be forgotten is his focus on his players being a positive student athlete.

In his “retirement”, Jack has continued to help the Q.U. soccer program and has also been active with Special Olympics as well. He also helps to deliver meals to those who need them.  Mackenzie is a member of the St. Vincent DePaul Society and volunteers at numerous places including Blessed Sacrament Parish’s Quincy Spirit Group.

Mackenzie was nominated by several people in the community. Those community nomination letters were reviewed by the Golden Deeds Award committee, who chose Jack Mackenzie as the most deserving nominee this year. The nominating letters were placed in the “Book of Golden Deeds” and presented to Mackenzie at the noon banquet held at the Stoney Creek Inn in Quincy.

The Book of Golden Deeds is the National Exchange Club’s longest running project, dating back to the first award, sponsored by the Exchange Club of Huntington, Indiana in 1919. Today’s presentation by the Quincy Exchange Club made Mackenzie the 64th recipient of the prestigious award.

Jack and his wife, Sharon, have six children…. Scott, Chris, Kevin, Beth, Brian and Megan.

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