Encyclopedia Dubuque
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Affiliated with the Local History Network of the State Historical Society of Iowa, and the Iowa Museum Association.
LUCY, Nicholas R.
LUCY, Nicholas "Nick" R. (Leadville, Colorado, Feb. 26, 1940--Dubuque, IA, Feb. 6, 2024). Part of the legacy "Nick" Lucy had among military veterans was his bugle call "taps" at funerals. He was a member of the American Legion funeral detail for over fifty years. He learned to play the coronet at the age of eleven before joining the East Dubuque Drum and Bugle Corps and later served as the bugler for Dubuque American Legion Post 6. Those who knew him well realized that this was only a portion of the contribution he made in Iowa. For decades, he was a passionate campaigner for veterans' benefits and rights.
Raised in East Dubuque, Illinois, Nick served in the Naval Reserves for one year, a submariner on the USS Medregal four years, and then a staff sergeant in the Air Force in Cheyenne, Wyoming. He was a member of the Navy Reserve in the VIETNAM WAR.
After completing his military service, Nick became a telephone technician for NORTHWESTERN BELL TELEPHONE COMPANY. He met his future wife Linda during a company training session in Des Moines; they were married five years later. He worked 40 years for Qwest (later CenturyLink) as a central office technician. (1)
Maintaining an active role in the American Legion, Nick served as the organization's state legislative chairman for three years and was the 1985 local Legion commander. He was an active member of the Communications Workers of America Local 7100 and over the years served as the vice president and steward. He served as chairman of the Dubuque Pioneers, a group composed of Communication Workers of America and retirees. In 2004 he received the Bob Bennett Recognition for Good Faith in Collective Bargaining Award from the DUBUQUE AREA LABOR-MANAGEMENT COUNCIL.
Nick, an activist in local Democratic politics, spent many presidential election cycles with his children at candidates' fundraisers and rallies. Nick and Linda also hosted many election-day Get-Out-the-Vote efforts and neighborhood caucuses. He developed a decades' long relationship with President Jimmy Carter and his family. Joe Biden, later president of the United States, called on Nick who had just had hip surgery, to see how he was improving. Nick was an alternate to the 1976 Democratic National Convention and a delegate to the 1978 convention. For several years, he hosted a weekly community access TV show, through which he promoted the Democratic agenda. He was inducted into the Dubuque Democratic Party Hall of Fame in 2010. (2)
After receiving his first camera at the age of 15, Nick continued the hobby his entire life and was a long-time member of the Dubuque Camera Club. His photos at countless Democratic and labor events appeared regularly in DUBUQUE LEADER (THE) labor newspaper for more than two decades.
It would be a disservice to Nick not to mention his devoted support to the DUBUQUE RESCUE MISSION, DUBUQUE MUSEUM OF ART, DUBUQUE SALVATION ARMY, Veterans of Foreign Wars, and the DUBUQUE FEDERATION OF LABOR.
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Source:
1. Locicero, Michael. "Lucy Still Plays Taps, Key Role for Veterans Group," Telegraph Herald, February 24, 2013. p. 53
2. "Dubuque Democratic Party Hall of Fame. Online: http://www.dbqdemocrats.org/about-us/hall-of-fame-inductees/