Richard Allen HANSON

1933 - 2022

Hanson, Richard Allen, born on 30 March 1933 in Grafton, North Dakota, died
of mantle cell lymphoma on 31 January 2022 in his small apartment at
Central Towers in downtown St Paul, Minnesota. Richard taught English and
History for 13 years in Barrett, Annandale, and Columbia Heights,
Minnesota; after that he mostly drove taxi cabs, city buses, or metro
mobility vehicles before retiring.

He loved music, especially when it included singing; he sang in the Hamline
University choir in the mid-1950s under Robert Holliday. He enjoyed sports,
playing football at Hamline, teaching football, baseball, and basketball to
his sons, and followed pro sports over the years, especially baseball. He
was passionate about trains and public transit, advocating for both to
anyone who would listen; he participated in a community advisory committee
during the planning of the Metro Green Line in St Paul; he loved to ride
trains in the US and in Europe, where he was able to visit family and
friends in Germany on several occasions.

Friends, neighbors, and family remember his sense of humor and how he loved
to tell stories from history, particularly about St Paul, baseball,
Germany, and from good books. One of his favorite authors was Jon Hassler
and one book that he read and gave away many times was The Killer Angels by
Michael Shaara. He didn't shy away from letting people know how he felt
about certain corporations, governments, or individuals, sometimes to a
fault.

He stayed physically active until quite recently and among his favorite
destinations were libraries and bars in St Paul and Minneapolis. He loved
to visit with friends and family; go for walks or rides; play catch (he
still used his cane to extend his reach catching an aerobie at age 86);
enjoy a beer; and listen to his granddaughters sing.

He will be missed by his sisters Maggie and Kathie; his brothers Bob and
Russ; his son Tim and daughter-in-law Kiki; granddaughters Anna and Pia;
many nephews and nieces; and many dear friends. He was preceded in death by
his son Ted, his sister Helen Louise, and his parents, Willard and Nell
(Steck) Hanson.

Memorials may be sent to the Germanic American Institute (
https://www.gaimn.org/); The Leukemia And Lymphoma Society (
https://www.lls.org/); or the hospice or elderly care-giving organization
of your choice.