 Dan Hawkins passed away on May 19th after a brief battle with late stage brain cancer. He was at home with his wife Jean at his bedside. Per Dan's request, there will be no funeral or other ceremony. Born in Stockton in 1937, Dan left school early to take a job working heavy equipment on road and building projects during the California post-war boom period. He married Jean Jacobson in 1956 (he was 19, she was 17) and rose through the ranks at work joining the Operating Engineers Union. They later moved to the Bay Area where Dan worked heavy equipment on many of the new BART tunnels and train stations. In 1963, he was credited with saving the lives of several pedestrians as the six-wheeled drilling rig he was driving into San Francisco lost its brakes and was headed down Golden Gate avenue at 50 mph before he steered it into seven parked cars in order to stop it. During the 1980s San Francisco high-rise building boom, he worked the building cranes towering above the City, climbing up hundreds of ladder rungs to the operator cab taking his lunch (and a bucket to relieve himself). On October 17, 1989 he was driving home on the Cypress structure in Oakland when the Loma Prieta earthquake struck, missing the catastrophic collapse by less than a minute. He and Jean lived in San Leandro working and owning several rental homes until retiring in 1995. They relocated to Sun City, Roseville where Dan enjoyed golf, home improvement and inventing. He was as comfortable building a 2000 square foot workshop out of recycled lumber as he was reading the Wall Street Journal and debating monetary policy. He is survived by his wife Jean, daughter Vickey of El Dorado Hills, son Peter of Olympia Washington, and five grandchildren (Mason, Miles, Delanie, Madigan and Cooper). Those of you who met Dan will remember his ability to light up a room with his personality, his never ending distrust of politicians and the government, and his tremendous passion for his family and his country. The world is a smaller place today with his passing.
![]() |
|
Bookmark this memorial on Facebook with the My Memorials™ application. My Memorials™ helps you honor departed family members, friends, and even favorite celebrities – all on your Facebook page.
|
Thank you. You have now memorialized on Facebook.
 |
The My Memorials Facebook app allows you to:
- Connect with memorials that are important to you.
- Get updates on your memorials in your Facebook News Feed.
- Share your memories with your Facebook friends.
|
|
|
|
You are searching
|
 |
|
|
