HANSELL, John T. (1930-2016)

HANSELL

Posted By: Karon Velau (email)
Date: 6/4/2017 at 23:35:42

John Thomas Hansell
(January 7, 1930 - June 13, 2016)

John Hansell, 86, of Des Moines, Iowa, formerly of Bettendorf and Indianola, passed away Monday, June 13, 2016 at Calvin Community in Des Moines, IA. Graveside services will be held at 2:00 p.m., Monday, June 20 at the Grimes Cemetery in Whitebreast Township, Lucas County, Iowa.
John Thomas Hansell was born on January 7, 1930 to Robert Ernest and Helen Ingles (McElroy) Hansell of Indianola, Iowa. He married the former Marie Vickroy on August 30, 1953 in Indianola. John was a 1948 graduate of Indianola High School and served in the U.S. Air Force. He received a B.A. in Mathematics from Simpson College in 1953 and an M.S. in Education from Drake University in 1956. After teaching high school math in Coon Rapids, IA, John joined Deere & Co. in 1957 as a Methods Engineer. He was first employed at John Deere Des Moines Works (Ankeny, IA), followed by an assignment to John Deere (Lanz Iberica) in Madrid, Spain. He retired in 1984 from John Deere Harvester Works in East Moline, IL. John enjoyed crossword puzzles (which he did in ink), playing cribbage, educational road trips, and mispronouncing the names of his children. He and Marie were long-time members of Bettendorf Presbyterian Church where they sang in the choir.
John was preceded in death by Marie, his wife of nearly 43 years, who died on April 20, 1996. He was also preceded in death by his parents and sister, Alice Helen (Hansell) Annear. He is survived by his children, Kathleen (Michael) Keigan of Knoxville, TN; Robert (Deb) Hansell of Ankeny, IA; Carol Hansell (Rick Dietz) of Ames, IA; five grandchildren, eight great-grandchildren, brother-in-law Bruce Annear, and several nieces and nephews. The family would like to thank all of the employees at Calvin Community, with special thanks to the Health Center staff, for caring for our father with dignity and compassion. This memorial is provided by Overton Funeral Home, 501 West Ashland Ave., Indianola, Iowa, [http://www.overtonfuneral.com/]