William “Bill” Hansson
January 10, 1928 – June 5, 2020
Dad passed away peacefully in his own bed during the early morning of June 5, 2020 at the age of 92.
Always a man with a quiet zest for life, dad would have liked to go on forever to continue to enjoy the simple pleasures life has to offer. But sadly time and his body had other plans. With his passing we lost one of our best friends, companions and our hero.
Born in Winnipeg, dad spent his early years growing up in Waldhof when his mom and dad moved there to work and farm. He has told us of many summers spent picking berries, helping neighbouring farmers and guiding on Eagle Lake. He started working for the Lands and Forests as a young man, met mom and our family had begun.
It’s interesting how relationships with a father can change over time. Of course when we were kids dad was just ‘dad’. The guy who worked hard, taught us to ride bikes, drive cars, and to be self-sufficient in so many ways. He rescued us when we were stuck, tutored all of us at math after first having to teach himself the ‘new’ math, and kicked our butts (figuratively) when they needed kicking. He looked after our many slivers, cuts and abrasions and made sure we had supper when he got home from work during the many years mom pursued her career teaching dancing and gymnastics. You know…dad stuff.
The transition from just ‘dad’ to friend began slowly but we link it to our family’s travels. For so many years dad was our impossibly patient chauffeur on long, noisy, crowded road trips all over North America and Europe. Is that where he honed his skills of concentration and ability to block out distractions? We do think it was during those trips and other travel time spent together that we started to know dad more as a person and a friend. And, as they say, the rest is history.
Among his many accomplishments were his 38 years at Lands and Forests (the Ministry of Natural Resources) in a variety of capacities from Chief Ranger at Cedar Lake to Fire Boss on many major forest fires in NWO to Regional Scaling Auditor when he retired in 1987. After retiring, together with his son Marc and whoever else felt like picking up a hammer, he designed and built a new home in which he would live for the rest of his life. However, we feel his most outstanding accomplishment, done compassionately and patiently for over 15 years, was the care he gave our mom in their home while she suffered from Alzheimer’s Disease. That is what really made him our hero.
There are so many more things that should be said about dad’s skills and accomplishments (can’t forget his uncanny ability at crib), his determination (some may call it stubbornness) and the myriad things that made dad who he really was. One of his greatest pleasures was sipping on a rum on the shady deck of some Caribbean hideaway. But, 92 years provides way too much life to share here. Suffice it to say he was a very good man who was loved by many and will be missed greatly.
Dad leaves behind a dedicated following of children – Vanda (Doug), Dana (Pat), Marc, and Shana (Chris) and grandchildren – Wraith (Gwen), Brendan (Krysta), Lauren (Ajay) and Arianne (Justin). And we mustn’t leave out all of his grand and great grand pets. All the pets knew grandpa was a soft touch especially when it came to treats.
He was predeceased by Leone, his wife of 62 years, his parents William and Evelyn Hansson and two of his 7 siblings – Carl and Edward. He leaves behind his sisters Ethel, Ruth and Mildred (Pinkie) and brothers Elmer and Earl.
While we celebrate dad’s life every day we hope to bring friends and family together at some point in the future for a group celebration when this world returns to a more normal state.
Donations may be made to the Second Chance Pet Network through the Dryden Community Funeral Home, 249 Grand Trunk Avenue, Dryden, ON P8N 2X3
Condolences may be posted at www.dcfh.ca or sent to mail@dcfh.ca subject heading: Hansson
