James “Jim” Ellis Hansen passed away on Sept. 9, 2015, at home surrounded by his family. He was born the third of six children in Waitsburg on May 19, 1921, to Albert and Margaret Leid Hansen, longtime pioneers of the Valley. Jim was a member of the undefeated 1938 and 1939 Waitsburg High School football teams and graduated from high school in 1939. Jim attended two years at Washington State College, where he studied agriculture engineering and was a member of Phi Delta Theta fraternity and worked at Ferdinand’s Creamery on campus.

After enlisting in the U.S. Army Engineers in March 1943, he served in the European Theater of Operations with the 846th Engineer Aviation battalion, earning five battle stars for his service in Normandy, Northern France, Ardennes (Battle of the Bulge), Rhineland and Central Europe, where he landed on Normandy Beach six days after D-Day to construct the first landing strip near Bayeaux for the 9th Air Force. In 2010, Jim traveled to Washington, D.C., with the Inland Northwest Honor Flight to visit the World War II Memorial in appreciation of his sacrifices he made 70 years ago to give us the liberty and freedom we and much of the world enjoy today.

After WWII, Jim met Mary Geraine Fries at a dance at the Marcus Whitman Hotel in Walla Walla. They were married on Jan. 8, 1947, at St. Patrick’s Catholic Church and remained married for 68 years. They had six children, Norman, Karen, Jeanette, John, Mary and Cheryl. In his early married life, while farming, Jim worked part-time as a telephone lineman, rural mail carrier, packer at the Preston-Shaffer Milling Co. in Waitsburg, plumber, electrician, carpenter and a custom farmer. Jim and Geraine formed Hansen Harvester, Inc. and farmed on North and South Coppei Road, Coppei Mountain, custom harvesting and custom no-tilling. Over a 57-year span, Jim and Geraine employed, housed and fed hundreds of young people who worked summer wheat harvests as a way to put themselves through college. He was known fondly as “Boss,” “401” and “403” and never believed in anything but a red combine careening over the steep Blue Mountain fields of gold, and the importance of a good education. In 2014, Jim and Geraine received the Pioneers of the Year honor by the Waitsburg Historical Society at the Waitsburg Fall Festival.

Jim served as commander of the Waitsburg American Legion, Chef de Gare of 40 et 8, chairman of the Waitsburg School Board, past president of the Walla Walla County Wheat Growers Association, Walla Walla County Farm Bureau, Walla Walla Production Credit Association, the Washington Wheat Commission and Pheasants Forever; board member for the National Association of Wheat Growers Western Wheat; Soil Conservation Farmer of the Year – 1966; member of the Walla Walla Elk Lodge #287, Toastmasters, Danish Sisterhood, WW Country Club and St. Mark’s Catholic Church in Waitsburg.

Jim loved to travel and enjoyed striking up a conversation in different languages with new friends. He and Geraine began their world travels in 1962, when they drove five children in a two-seated International Harvester Travelette pickup to Mexico City. Since that initial trip, they toured more than 57 countries ono six continent to such locations as Southeast Asia, Africa, India, Nepal, and Mt. Everest, Europe, South America, China, the Holy Land, Panama Canal, the former Soviet Union, Scandinavia and the Caribbean.

Jim also loved to tend his many farm animals, whether raising Black Angus cattle or feeding his many cats and dogs. He also loved reading about history, especially WWII history, and wrote several family history stories and personal letters over the years.

Jim followed Washington State University Cougar sports and was a lifelong supporter of Cougar Athletics and the Agricultural Research Center for wheat production. Jim would always say, “Go Cougs!” and “Well, the boys are young” being the true optimist he was about Cougar football.

Survivors are his wife, Geraine; his two sons, Norman Hansen (Melissa) of Waitsburg, John Hansen of Ferndale; his four daughters, Karen Yager of Waitsburg, Jeanette Hansen of Walla Walla, Mary Hansen (Creston Rogerson) of Waitsburg, Cheryl Hansen (Alex Roberts) of Pullman; sisters, Ruth Hansen of Sequim, Rena Johnson of Walla Walla; grandsons, Eugene, Christopher and Gregory Hansen, Michael Salvador; six step-grandchildren; and six great-grandchildren. Preceding him in death are his parents; his siblings, Delbert, Helen, Tom; and son-in-law, Warren “Bud” Yager.

Viewing and visitation was held on Sunday, Sept. 13, 2015, from 1 p.m. until 5 p.m. at the Herring Groseclose Funeral Home. The funeral Mass was held at St. Mark’s Catholic Church in Waitsburg on Monday, Sept. 14, 2015, at 10 a.m. with burial at the Waitsburg Cemetery. Lunch followed at St. Mark’s Parish Hall. Memorial donations may be made to the charity of choice through the Herring Groseclose Funeral Home, 315 W. Alder, Walla Walla. Family and friends are invited to sign the online guest book at http://www.herringgroseclose.com.