Phyllis Maxine Hansen

She died peacefully at the Kiwanis Lodge long-term care home in Nanaimo. She was predeceased by her husband Bill Hansen and her daughter Sharon Hansen (Barry). She is survived by son Gary Hansen (Lin) and daughter Brenda Zboyovsky (Rommie), grandchildren Brett Zboyovsky, Bryce Zboyovsky, Keelin Glatley, Marlene Cline and great-grandchild Rommie Zboyovsky.

She was born on November 21, 1927 in Stony Plain, Alberta, the eldest of six children. She was raised on the family farm just south of Stony Plain. Her early life wasn't easy as she grew up during the Great Depression and WW II however, she liked to point out that they never went hungry and she only ever had good things to say about her early life.

In 1951 she travelled to Vancouver Island to help her cousin Madeline who was having her first child. It was then that she met the love of her life, Valentine William (Bill) Hansen and they married on August 22, 1953, settling first in Duncan and then moving to Honeymoon Bay. A son, Gary was born in 1955, a daughter Sharon was born in 1957 and another daughter Brenda was born in 1959. The family moved to Nanaimo in 1968 where Phyllis resided for the rest of her life.

As was common during her early married life, the husband went to work to support the family and the wife did everything else. She did the shopping, cooked, cleaned, sewed, nurtured, tutored, taxied and generally kept everything in order and running well. Somehow, she also found time to socialize and was a great friend to many in the tight-knit community.

With the move to Nanaimo and her children older and able to be left alone, she started part-time work with Simpson-Sears (later just Sears) in 1970. She worked in various jobs there for close to 30 years but she most enjoyed being the on-floor sales person in Housewares and Hardware where she could be of the most help for the customers.

She was a wonderful cook and a great baker and took many classes to keep expanding her food horizons. Friends could always drop in and the fridge would magically produce something great.

She had a passion for gardening, especially flowers, and the family yard was always beautiful. She developed a passion for travelling, initially with Bill but he didn't have the same passion for globetrotting so she continued to travel with various friends for many years.

In 2000 she had an onset of macular degeneration and became legally blind. Although initially she still had some sight, the condition continued to worsen for the rest of her life eventually putting an end to world travelling among many other things. Although saddened by this condition, she never complained and just “got on” with life.

She continued to live in the family home after Bill's death in 2001 until 2012 when she moved into the Long Lake Chateau retirement home. In 2024 she was able to move to Kiwanis where she lived until her passing.