Kenneth Hansen
Kenneth Cramer Hansen, 89, of Glasgow died Sept. 9, 2020, at Valley View Home, in Glasgow.
He was born Oct. 30, 1930, in Fargo, N.D., to Carl O. and Bernice (Cramer) Hansen. His early years were spent in Poplar where his father was a teacher and a coach. He attended Poplar schools graduating from high school in 1948, followed by graduation from North Dakota Agricultural College in 1952. Being in the ROTC program, he immediately went into the U.S. Air Force, serving during the Korean War.
Following discharge, he returned to Poplar where he assisted his mother, until her death, in managing the insurance business his father had established in the late 1930s.
Having been blessed with athletic ability, he was an avid fan and participated in many sports including basketball, football, baseball, bowling, racquetball and golf. He enjoyed independent basketball, served as a catcher for the Scobey Plainsmen independent baseball team and played golf at any course available.
The other interests in his life were hunting, fishing and gardening. The fishing, hunting trips to the mountains in search of elk and the bird hunts on the prairie and marshes were shared with friends and family. When it came to gardening, nothing pleased him more than handing out a batch of asparagus in the spring or a pumpkin in the fall.
Returning to Poplar after the Air Force stint, he fulfilled his desire to become a pilot and, with partners, became a partial owner of a plane. This led to the next phase of his life.
Some of his relatives in North Dakota thought that he should meet “that widowed home ec. teacher at Valley City High School.” With some manipulation by his aunt and cousin, that came to pass. Coming courting in a Beechcraft Bonanza must have done the trick, because soon he was wedded to Barbara Kjelland Rippe.
Nine years after acquiring a wife and two sons, he was offered the position of northeast Montana branch manager for Northwestern National Life Insurance Company, so he moved the family, four horses, one dog and a cat to a home three miles east of Glasgow. This move led to many opportunities, recognition in the company, friendships and travel.
Travel by air, rail or road and a change of scenery was a priority for this social, people-loving man. Upon retirement, the cabin at The Pines was exchanged for an Indio, Calif., condo where the Hansen’s spent 13 fulfilling winters. After returning to yearround living in Valley County, a “senior friendly” home was built in Glasgow. This was his home until a combination of stroke and dementia necessitated a move to Valley View Nursing Home.
He was a lifelong supporter of his churches: First Presbyterian in Poplar and First Congregational United Church of Christ in Glasgow.
He was preceded in death by his sister, Merilyn Ballard.
He is survived by his wife, Barbara; sons, John Hansen and Carl Hansen; four grandchildren; three great-grandchildren; and siblings, Jim Hansen and Sharon Dallas.
A memorial service and time of remembrance will be held at a later date.
