Evelyn M. Hansen

Evelyn Minnie Keeping Hansen

Evelyn Minnie Keeping Hansen age 95 of Hawley, passed away on Sunday January 5, 2014 at Eventide in Moorhead, MN.
Evelyn, a life-long resident of Hawley was born May 1, 1918 on the farm in Hawley Township. She is the daughter of Charles R. and Minnie Wenthin Keeping. Evelyn attended Hawley Public Schools and graduated in 1938. She remembered riding the long box-looking school bus. As a young lady she worked for neighbors and later assisted at the Borghild and Edward Peck home in Hawley for several years, making as many as seventy individual pies plus layer cakes and doughnuts on busy days. She also helped make dinners at the house during the busy seasons to take to “Peck’s Café”. She received three and one-half dollars a week and could put it into savings for future use. She met Harry E Hansen at a neighborly party, where friends and neighbors gathered for visiting, coffee, a game of whist and dancing, which was the best entertainment. On September 18, 1941, she married Harry E Hansen at her parents’ farm home. They operated a family dairy farm southwest of Hawley, MN for many years. The couple had seven children: Ron, Auggie, Bob, Duane, Bev, Alan and Carol. Evelyn kept herself busy raising a number of chickens, always having a large garden, canning many jars of vegetables, pickles, and fruits; also meats, jams and jellies, taking care of the clothes, and baking an endless amount of bread and pastries for her family. With the purchase of a freezer, she froze fruits and vegetables. In later years, she became an active member in Homemakers, the senior citizens group, church circle and enjoyed visiting with family and friends.
Evelyn is survived by her 4 sons, Ronald Darlene of Moose Lake, MN, Robert Sharon of Park Rapids, MN, Duane Carol of Hawley, MN, Alan of Hawley, MN; 2 daughters, Beverly Timothy Bernhardson of Stockton, CA, Carol Blatchford of Fargo, ND; 17 grandchildren and 23 great grandchildren. She is also survived by 2 brothers: Vernon Keeping of Moorhead, MN, LeRoy Keeping of Suffolk, England; sister-in-law Betty Bob Davis of Fargo, ND and many nieces and nephews. She is preceded in death by her son Auggie, husband, parents, sister Jeanette, brothers Richard and George.

Visitation: Thursday, January 9, 2014, from 5:00 P.M. until 7:00 P.M. with a prayer service at 7:00 P.M., in Wright Funeral Home, Hawley.

Funeral: 11:00 a.m. Friday, January 10, 2014 at Hawley Lutheran Church in Hawley, MN.

Interment: Hawley Cemetery, Hawley, MN.

In lieu of flowers the family requests donations be made to H.E.R.T. Hawley Emergency Response Team, Hospice of the Red River Valley or the Western Minnesota Steam Threshers.