Baker City, Oregon
Roy E. Hanson, 88, of Baker City died May 12, 2001, at Settler’s Park Assisted Living Center.
His memorial service will be at 11 a.m. Wednesday at the Agape Christian Center, 650 Highway 7. Rod Dickison will officiate. There will be a reception afterward at the church.
Mr. Hanson was born on Dec. 4, 1912, at Decatur County, Iowa. As a young man, he farmed with his dad in South Dakota until the Depression came and they lost almost everything.
He married Rose Fox at Rockham, S.D., in 1934 and shortly afterward, the family moved to Nampa, Idaho, where he and his wife farmed. They had three children while living at Nampa: Bonnie, Nancy and Roger.
In 1953, the family moved to Rice, Wash., where they continued farming and logging and where Nancy and Roger finished school.
After retiring from farming at Rice, they moved to Colville, Wash., where Mr. Hanson worked as a carpenter. He always found a lot of odd jobs to do for others and he was always willing to give a helping hand.
He and his wife also had an interim home for children of distressed families and were foster parents for more than 400 children. Many of those children have remained in touch and will remember Mr. Hanson kindly for the good home he and his wife offered.
Mrs. Hanson died of a heart attack in 1971. Mr. Hanson married Dessa Hall in 1973. She died of cancer in 1977.
He and Agnes Tschirgi were married in 1980. They lived at Colville until moving to Baker City in 1988, where they retired.
Mr. Hanson loved music and played the accordion by ear. He performed at many church gatherings, nursing homes and during his travels to Yuma, Ariz., with retired friends.
He was moved to the Settler’s Park Alzheimer’s Unit in 2000. The family is thankful for all those who served him there.
Survivors include his wife, Agnes, and her children, Cliff and Judy Tschirgi, of La Grande, Peggy and Jim Galyen of Baker City and Ginger and Roger Strawn of Fruitland, Idaho; his daughter, Bonnie Clowser of Spokane, Wash.; his son, Roger Hanson and his wife, Jennie, of El Paso, Texas; a sister, Edna Einhelig of Caldwell, Idaho; a brother, Carl Hanson of Weiser, Idaho; son-in-law, John Hedrick, and his wife, Mary; eight grandchildren, 16 great-grandchildren and two great-great-grandchildren.
He also was preceded in death by his daughter, Nancy, in 1981.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Pathway Hospice through Gray’s West & Co., P.O. Box 726, Baker City, OR 97814.
Used with permission from: The Baker City Herald, Baker City, Oregon, May 18, 2001
Transcribed by: Belva Ticknor