Eva M. Hansen
Oct. 25. 1911-July 4, 2017
Eva MayBelle Hansen
passed away at the grand
age of 105 on July 4, 2017,
at Trinity Hospital in
Minot after suffering a
stroke on July 1.
She was born on the
family farm in Deering,
ND, on Oct. 25, 1911, to
E.L. (Pat) and Florence
(Hall) Hance. The oldest
of nine children, she
worked hard on the fami-
ly farm taking care of her
siblings and doing the
chores. After graduating
from Deering High School
in 1931, Eva attended
Minot State Teachers Col-
lege and received her
teacher’s certificate. She
taught for several years in
rural schools around
North Dakota, and always
said it was such a happy
feeling earning her own
money by doing some-
thing she loved.
As a child her family at-
tended a country church,
the Deering Free Metho-
dist Church. The church
was later moved into
town and became the
Deering Lutheran Church,
where she attended and
her children were all con-
firmed.
Eva married Lester
Detlef Hansen on October
15, 1942, in Mandan, ND.
After their marriage, they
purchased a farmstead
north of Deering where
they farmed and raised
chickens, hogs, and
polled Hereford cattle.
She raised four children
as a fulltime wife, mother
and homemaker. She sold
eggs to the local store and
to the neighbors, raised a
garden, canned veget-
ables, and helped on the
farm, including painting
the barn and other build-
ings. An active gardener
until the age of 100, she
once raised a
record-breaking 32-pound
cabbage.
When Lester’s health
deteriorated, Eva was
determined to take care of
him at his home, which
she did until his passing
in 2000. She continued
living on the farm until
2013 when she fell and
broke her hip. After a
short stay at Manor Care
for therapy, she moved to
Brookdale Assisted Living
in Minot where she en-
joyed activities like Bingo,
music, and visiting with
residents and staff. She
was named the Resident
of the Month in February
2014.
Throughout her life,
Eva enjoyed her flower
gardens, watching birds
with Lester, reading
books, making quilts for
the family, writing in her
diary, and scrapbooking.
She also enjoyed her
years of membership in
the Grilley Township
Homemaker’s Club and
Deering Senior Citizens.
She liked to travel to see
family and new places,
with memorable trips to
South Dakota, Ohio, Min-
nesota, Arizona, Colorado,
Massachusetts, Nebraska,
Iowa, Las Vegas, Washing-ton, D.C. and New York.
She was an avid reader
and had a great interest in
people and history. She
stayed current on events
by reading the newspaper
every day, and had her
children read it to her
when she was no longer
able to see. An amazing
storyteller to her last days,
she loved to tell tales
about her life’s adventures
to her friends and family.
Surviving family in-
cludes: Children, Florence
Hillman, Muriel (Greg)
Stach, Carolyn Raymond
and William (Marla) Han-
sen; grandchildren, Alisha
(Christopher) Lorang, Ni-
cholas (Ayoku) Stach, An-
thony Stach, Michael
(Marie) Hillman, Jennifer
(Steve) Swangler, Shane
Hansen, Dustin (Kari Lar-
son) Hansen and Sara
(Darren) Lone Fight;
great-grandchildren, Alex-
andria, Sydney, and
Mathias Lorang, Anju Eva
and Louie Lester Stach,
Avery and Brynna Stach,
Joseph and Stephen Hill-
man and Oskar and Olive
Hansen; siblings, Wilford
Hance, Faye Zurcher and
Glenn (Eileen) Hance; and
her sister-in-law, Clarice
Hance.
Eva was preceded in
death by: her parents;
husband, Lester;
grandchildren, Chadwick
Raymond and Nathaniel
and Garrett Lorang; sis-
ters, Edna, Geneva and
Dorothy; and her brothers,
Robert and Lynn.
Funeral: Saturday, July
8, 2017 at 11:00 a.m. at
Bethany Lutheran
Church, Minot, ND.
Interment: Sunset
Memorial Gardens, Minot,
ND.
Visitation: An hour pri-
or to the service at the
church.
Those wishing to sign
the online register and
share memories may ac-
cess the online obituaries
section at
(www.thompson
larson.com).