Eileen L. Hanson

Hanson, Eileen L. (Danes) of Quincy

Eileen died peacefully on February 1st surrounded by loving friends and caregivers at Sunrise of Braintree Assisted Living.

Eileen was born in Back Centre, Lunenburg County, Nova Scotia. She was the daughter of Mable Blanchard Heisler and George Enos Dares; decedents of two of the earliest land grant holders in that part of Nova Scotia. She immigrated to the Boston area with her mother in 1925, eventually settling in Quincy where she spent the next 84 years of her life. She became a US Citizen in 1933. She attended the Parker Elementary School, North Quincy High School and Burdett College in Boston. She worked as a secretary for Robbie Coal and Oil during the war.

She grew up in a musical household, which hosted a steady stream of friends, and family members with close ties down home in Nova Scotia. In her younger days, Eileen enjoyed tap dancing, playing the piano, and doing acrobatics. She claimed she could do cartwheels and flips the length of Carle Road. She spent many fine long summer days swimming and baking herself extra crispy at Wollaston Beach. 

She married her husband Lester E. Hanson of Bar Harbor, Maine in 1945; A loving marriage that lasted 63 years until Les died in 2009. They went out dancing at local VFW posts at least once a week for many years, even though she said she had two left feet.

Eileen loved to travel. She spoke often of an auto trip she and her mother Mabel took out to California by themselves, in the late 30’s, traveling hundreds of miles on dirt roads, through wild country with primitive accommodations along the way. 

She also did many trips to Nova Scotia with her family to visit her Uncle Kenny and Aunt Lottie Heisler on their farm in Lunenburg County. She loved their son Gerald as the big brother she never had. 

Eileen and Les were long time summer residents of Bar Harbor, Maine and enjoyed many good times with Lester’s large family as well as the beautiful scenery of Acadia National Park.

Eileen is survived by her son David L. Hanson of Albuquerque, New Mexico, a retired physicist formerly of Sandia National Laboratory and Kenneth E. Hanson of Quincy, MA and Bar Harbor, ME a AAA Member Service Counselor.

Eileen will be buried in Blue Hill Cemetery, Braintree. There will be a private graveside ceremony, per her request.

The family would like to thank all the caregivers at Sunrise of Braintree and her hospice nurses at Ascend for the excellent care that she received over her last four years.

Donations may be made in Eileen’s memory to Friends of Acadia, PO Box 45, Bar Harbor, ME 04609 or to Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, P.O. Box 849168, Boston, MA 02284-9168.