Lifelong newspaper publisher and author, Ramon De Vere "Ray" Hansen, passed away peacefully on Sunday, Feb. 11, 2024, at Good Samaritan Center in Olathe, Kan. He was 97. He was surrounded by family, loved ones and compassionate caregivers during the time of his passing.
Ramon was born to Raymond Earl and Minnie Marie (Lucina) Daniel Hansen on April 28, 1926, in Bloomfield, Neb., the oldest of six brothers and two sisters. During his senior year, in March 1944, Ray and several classmates loaded into his 1928 Whippet and drove to the U.S. Post Office in Norfolk, where they enlisted in the U.S. Navy. Two months later, upon graduation from Bloomfield High School, Ray immediately reported for active duty. He boarded the troop train in Omaha and two days later, hopped off in Sand Point, Idaho, en route to Camp Farragut. After successfully completing basic training, Ray was assigned to serve in the Seabees, the U.S. Naval Construction Battalion. After traversing to California for final training near Catalina Island, he boarded the U.S.S. Fairland, was shipped to Seattle and eventually to Guam, where he was stationed through the end of World War II. In June 1946, he returned home and received an honorable discharge. Ray was a proud Seabee and always reflected on the critical role his unit played in helping pave the way for the military operations that transpired in the Pacific Theater.
Ray returned to Nebraska after the War and attended the University of Nebraska at Lincoln under the GI Bill. He worked his way through college and earned a bachelor's degree in journalism, where he graduated with honors on the fifth anniversary of D-Day, June 6, 1949. After working for the Lincoln Journal as a cub reporter, Ray was offered an opportunity to cover the daily activities of the United States Senate in Washington, D.C. He wasted no time and was on the next train to Capitol Hill. While in D.C., Ray eventually took a communications position with the newly formed International Union of Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers. In this position, Ray led the union by developing promotional materials and organizing labor campaigns where the union was seeking bargaining rights at various plants and factories in the Northeast. Ray spent eight years in the greater D.C. area before moving back to the Midwest to pursue his love of journalism and a dream of owning and operating his own newspaper.
Ray bought the Waushara Argus in Wautoma, Wis., in October 1959. Two years later, Ray hired a new office manager, Donna Delight Toepper, a music teacher from the Wautoma School District, who was interested in a second job. In 1964, he sold the newspaper, but the two continued to maintain contact through correspondence. Ray and Donna were united in marriage at Christ Memorial United Methodist Church on March 13, 1965, in Bloomfield. After the wedding, the couple honeymooned at the Elms Resort in Excelsior Springs, Mo. Ray and Donna were married for 56 years. During that time, they spent most of those years owning, managing and operating community newspapers in Kansas, Arkansas and New York.
In 1965, the couple settled in Omaha, where their two sons, Christopher and Eric, were born in 1966. In 1970, the family moved to Neodesha, Kan., where they owned and operated the Neodesha Sun until 1974. After a long and relaxing vacation on Lake Michigan in Door County, Wis., the family acquired the Prairie Drummer in Colby, Kan. In 1978, they sold the operation whereupon they moved to Siloam Springs and purchased the Interstate News. After a successful six-year run in Northwest Arkansas, in 1985, the couple relocated to Carthage, N.Y. Together, they went to work for the Watertown Daily Times, managing and operating the Carthage Republican Tribune until the time of their retirement. Ray officially retired in 2001, at the age of 75; however, his writing days were far from over. Although his eyesight was continually diminishing, Ray penned and published four books in retirement, completing his last book, "30 My Newspaper Life," at the age of 92. In 2019, the couple relocated to their final home at Cedar Lake Village in Olathe.
Ray was grandfather to five grandchildren, Megan Turpin of Leavenworth, Kan., Halie Linduff (Harrison) of Shawnee, Taylor Hansen of DeSoto, Kan., Grant Hansen (Lauren) of Shawnee and Levi Hansen of Shawnee; and one great-granddaughter, Savannah Turpin of Leavenworth.
Ray loved reading a variety of newspapers, writing letters and authoring his memoirs. Ray was a skilled outdoorsman, loved nature and was an avid environmentalist. He thoroughly enjoyed reading an informative book, adding to his personal library, delivering an occasional lecture and challenging family and friends to a game of Trivial Pursuit. Donna and Ray enjoyed traveling to museums and attending theatrical and musical performances in the communities where they resided. Their shared love for theater, fine dining and passion for learning, took the couple on many bus trips to Niagara-on-the-Lake, the Shaw Festival, New York City, Chautauqua Institution, and countless other destinations.
A military graveside service will be held at 11 a.m. Friday, April 26, 2024, at Fort Scott National Cemetery, with a private burial in Bloomfield, Neb., at a later date.
Ray is survived by sons, Christopher (Kimberly) of Shawnee and Eric (Angela) of Gardner. One brother also survives him, Norvin (Fuzz) Hansen (Janet) of Pender, Neb.; and sister, Lael Greenlee (Tim) of Gothenburg, Neb. Ray left many nieces and nephews, as well.
Ray was preceded in death by his parents; sister, Peggy; brothers, Raymond (Dane), Keith, Gary and James; and loving wife of 56 years, Donna.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorials be sent to Olathe Health Hospice Care or Hospice House of Olathe.
Arrangements under the direction of Bruce Funeral Home in Gardner, Kan.
