Dr. John I. "Jack" Hense

Jack was born in St. Louis, MO on June 9, 1925, to Earl L. Hense and Margaret (Wimer) Hense. The family moved to Kansas City, MO when Jack was a child, and settled in the Waldo area. As a boy growing up during the Great Depression, Jack attended St. Elizabeth Catholic grade school, and then De LaSalle High School, where he graduated as class valedictorian. Always active as a child and teenager, Jack loved sports, playing golf, baseball, basketball and football.

After high school, Jack attended Rockhurst College, followed by midshipmen school at the University of Notre Dame. Upon receiving his commission for military service in World War II, he served as an ensign and chaplain on Naval LST vessels from 1944-1946. Among his many experiences with active combat, Jack fought in the Battle of Okinawa, the largest amphibious assault in the Pacific Theater. He later assisted with the Allied occupation of Japan immediately following V-J Day. Upon his return to Kansas City, Jack finished his studies at Rockhurst, and then moved on to dental school at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. Military service once again played a role in Jack’s life from 1951 to 1953, as he headed off to Korea as a Lieutenant in the Navy Dental Corps attached to the 1st Marine Air Wing in the Korean Conflict. While serving in Korea, he helped establish an orphanage and provided dental services for displaced war refugees.

The most momentous event in Jack’s life was marrying Mary Ann Miller on November 25, 1950. For the next 67 years, Jack and Mary Ann raised six children, actively participated in their church and community, and shared a beautiful and loving marriage until Mary Ann’s passing in 2018. As their family grew, Jack could often be found as a starter at his children’s swim meets at various pools across the city, or on the sidelines coaching their sports teams, always exhibiting his trademark patience and easy-going manner. In his later years, Jack, or Doc to his many friends and family, loved playing tennis and golf, following KU basketball, Chiefs football, and Royals baseball, having coffee with friends, sailing the Caribbean and Chesapeake Bay, traveling the world, and enjoying time with his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Doc’s greatest joy, however, came from sharing quiet moments at home or taking walks with his beloved wife Mimi.

Jack practiced dentistry for over 38 years in KCMO and then Johnson County until his retirement in 1987. Jack and Mary Ann were founding members of Curé of Ars Catholic Church, where he served as an usher and Eucharistic minister well into his 90s. He was a charter member and trustee of the Serra Club of Johnson County, and a Fourth Degree Knight of Columbus, and was also active in many volunteer organizations, including Christmas in October, Catholic Charities, and Meals on Wheels. A man of abundant faith, integrity and humility, Jack was always the first to help, but the last to take credit.

Jack was preceded in death by his parents Earl and Marge, his wife Mary Ann, his daughter Mary Patricia (“Tricia”) McNeive, his grandson Luke Shaffer and his great-grandson Michael Maloney III. He is survived by his children Marcia Shaffer (Jeff) of Santa Fe, NM; Jeanine Maloney (Mike), of Wichita, KS; Karen Goehausen (Paul) of Leawood, KS; John I. Hense, Jr. (Jennifer) of Leawood, KS; and Robert Hense (Pamela) of Lake Forest, IL.; he is also survived by his brothers Raymond L. Hense and James G. Hense, sister Mary Ellen Higgins, son-in-law Jim McNeive, and his 18 grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren.

A rosary will be prayed at 11:00 am on Friday, August 14th at Curé of Ars Catholic Church, 9401 Mission Road, Leawood, KS, followed by the Mass of Christian Burial at 11:30 am. Masks are required and social distancing will be practiced. Inurnment will be at Leavenworth National Cemetery later in the Fall on the date of Mimi and Doc’s 70th wedding anniversary. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests contributions to Catholic Charities of Northeast Kansas or the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF).