-Another one of those moments in which I was reminded that Father knows best was the day I went to American Falls Reservoir with my friends and came home with a cracked open head, two wrecked jet skis, and lots of tears. I wanted to go with my friends so bad that day and I could not understand why you didn’t want me to go. I remember you gave me a plethora of excuses: I had a cold sore coming on and you threatened it would get worse (you know me and my loathing of cold sores well, but even that didn’t work); you reminded me that you and mom would be out of town, but nothing was going to stop me from going and eventually you gave in. I realize now that the Spirit was telling you to keep me home. But instead your stubborn teenage daughter prevailed and although nothing life threatening occurred I learned that maybe listening to your dad who knows (and feels) a lot more than you do is a good thing. I will never forget that lesson. It taught me to trust you more as well as to trust the Spirit more. I hope I can teach my children those things too. {taryn}
-Just like in every family, there are multiple different personalities that make up the rowdy bunch we call the Hansen family. You were always the first to be very polite and honest, and then throw in a quick flatulence or joke that would catch everyone off guard and laugh uncontrollably. A few of my favorites would be when we would sing Christmas songs in front of the cameras and you would throw a quick fart in the middle of "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer" causing everyone to laugh so hard it was almost impossible to finish singing.Your attitude in life was always positive and would make sure you put your family first. No matter what the situation, you always spoke in a calm and cool manner, especially around us kids. I cant remember a time you ever yelled in front of me, which I respect alot. Thank you for being a great example to me spiritually and in life as well.{dusty}
-I can’t even begin to describe how much I love and appreciate you. It means a lot to me that you confirmed me after I was baptized and have always been a great example for me. I’ve never met a person with so much faith that you have. It’s incredible to me! Even as you go through such a difficult trial in your life I’ve never heard you complain about anything and you always have your head held high. Even if you are feeling down you never showed it. {Brittany}
-Memories from the blue "Torino" are quite vivid. I always felt like a low rider in that car. Like I was leaning back looking up. You always had a tape playing in the tape deck that had the special cover that you dad made so it wouldn't get stolen. You played the music for me "Wishing on A Star" and "If you Leave Me Now". We argue now that I said you made the tapes just for me but you said you already had them. For some reason I loved your arms. Don't know why but they attracted me. I liked your hands. But what really won me over was that you would take my hand and kiss it. What a melt the heart tactic. You were an amazing husband. You always supported me in all of my adventures. I kept you guessing and hopping. But you always seemed to be ok with it. For the most part. Sometimes I had to talk you into things or make you think it was your idea before you would agree. I always, always knew that you loved me. You would tell me often and you treated me with kindness and respect. You supported me in my hobbies and would let me visit Jodi anytime i felt a need. Even if it was going to make you come and get me after traveling to Oregon without any way home. You agreed to it and that would just confirm that you loved me and wanted me to be happy. I hope you know that I always was happy. Happy with our homes, our children, our lives, our love. You got sick four years ago and our lives turned upside down. They only gave you 6 months but the fighter and determined person you were, you told them not to give you any limits and times and you would decide your time. We had our good days and our bad days but we always took advantage of the good days. We would fill them with activities, social events, sports events and Island Park and Bear Lake. You were a real trooper through all of the chemo and medications. You just could never get your energy back. But even with no energy, you never missed a basketball game and only 1 or 2 practices in all of the four years. It kept you going. I am so glad that I was able to be with you for all of your treatments, surgeries, etc. You were my partner in love, crime and sickness. Thanks for your humor even during the last of your sickness. The last thing you wanted all of us and especially me to know is that you loved us. We never doubted it. We felt it around us and through us always. I could go on forever. I guess this is why we are supposed to keep a journal. Not try to write our life history in one night. I know that you are where you are supposed to be and I know that you are happy and well. I will forever be grateful for the worthy priesthood holder you were and are. Thank you for being worthy to bless me and our children and to take me to the temple and marry me for time and all eternity. We will be together again, I know. I just have to be patient and endure and be worthy to enter into you arms again. I love you forever and miss you more with each passing day. I am blessed to have so much love by our family and friends. You started a great legacy for our children and our grandchildren. We promise to continue it and be of good cheer. {mom}
-i wish i could write every time you influence my life for good. but it would be an exhausting read, and i feel one experience in particular highlights perfectly the divine influence you have had on my life. did you know you were absolutely instrumental in the most important decision in my life? it is quite the responsibility to pretty much single-handedly determine another's fate. i think about it all the time, you know. it was one comment that changed the course of my life and completely altered my goals. among the pine trees in island park, kyrsten and i were playing and talking about how fabulous our future lives were going to be. i had it all figured out by my tender eleven or so years on this earth. i was going to have an important career; like a very elite surgeon, or a fearless lawyer, or a business-driven broker in new york. i had no desire to be married. but yes, of course i wanted a child. but i wanted to be philanthropic and adopt a little asian girl or a malnourished child in africa. i remember feeling excited about my plans for my life and anxiously explaining all the places i would travel and all the things i would accomplish to kyrsten. that is when you taught me a lesson i would really never forget. you said, 'maddie, did you know that you need to be married in the temple to live with Jesus and our family in the celestial kingdom?' i knew about the plan of salvation from primary, and despite all your clever tricks and teases (pulling the finger really only has one result), i loved, respected, and trusted you with all my eleven-year-old heart. and i knew you were telling the truth. years later, i still thought about that simple comment that changed everything. i saw everything as steps to bring me to the ultimate goal of living worthily to be married to the one i love forever in the Holy House of the Lord.{addie}
-All of the teasing and toe popping was probably good for me, we all need a little of that from time to time, and luckily you were more than willing to do it for us. I have always been grateful that I have such loving and caring uncles, even if that love comes as teasing. And thankfully, no permanent damage was done to my feet since I am still able to wear shoes. I admire the good life you have lived and the good lives each member of your family has lived because of how you and Joni raised your kids, and the type of home you established early on. I admire all of the commendable qualities you have exemplified during this trial in your life, and I hope that not only can I learn from you, but that I can be blessed enough to develop and emulate those qualities in my life. I love you Uncle Scott. We all do. {carli}
-As I returned home from my mission, I wanted to set a bar for my future family like you had done. I wanted to be that kind of example to those around me like you were to me. Your church callings and service showed me that your selflessness was because you loved your Heavenly Father. The spirit bore witness to me many times that you are a man called by God to lead. There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that you are with our Father in Heaven right now doing his work. He had so many things for you to do to prepare the way for all of us to return to live with Him again. THAT is where your next calling is. Uncle Scott, I miss you and am so proud of you. As the scripture says in Mathew 25:21, “His lord said unto him, well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy Lord.” Thank you for being you and for your unconditional love. You are a warrior and a great uncle. I know you are in a good place and we will have a grand reunion when that time comes. Until that day, I will try my best to walk in your shoes of service, humility, love and kindness. I love you! {andy}
-You always provided us with a safe, comfortable home. I understand more now then ever that living on a teacher’s salary, with 4 kids couldn’t have been easy, but you always made it work. You made it work with all your summer jobs and coaching I think. I remember you mostly working at the INEEL in the summer times. And then of course mowing lawns. What were we thinking doing that HUGE lawn in Inkom by the way? I also remember you always coaching. We would go to softball games, football games, boys basketball and finally girls basketball games. I was always (and still am) so proud to say that my dad was a coach at Highland High School. You inspired a lot of kids dad. I know that there are lots of people that look up to you because of how you treated them in sports! {me}
-I want to say that it was really wonderful to be in the temple with your family as Jace went for the first time last Wednesday. I felt like I was able to understand the plan of Heavenly Father better by thinking of your family. The endowment is such a great sketch of that plan and brings things into perspective. With the right perspective, the events of our lives make a lot of sense. It’s surprising sometimes what God’s will/plan has in store for us. I know he knows what He’s doing and I know that his plan is based upon his love for us.You’re family is wonderful. You have great children. I’m sure that they will be the best reflection of the good man that you are for a very long time. I love you and thank you for your example. {cody}
-One of my favorite memories of you and I is when I was a little girl and we would always listen to Butterfly Kisses in the truck and then we would lean in and give them to each other with our eyelashes. Something so small that made me so happy! Daddy, I want you to know how much I love and respect you. You will always be the best dad in the whole world no matter what anyone else says. You always knew exactly what to say when I was down. I want you to know that I knew how much you loved mom and that you will continue to show her that love. {taigen}
-Then his decision came to go on a mission for the church. It was his own decision and he stuck with it. There was a young gal that he kind of liked, but that was put on hold. He was called to the Philippines for two years. and when he came home Dad made sure that that little gal knew when he would be coming in on the plane. They dated and time went by and they got engaged and then he married that little gal, named Joni Gunter. He went on to graduate from I.S.U. and became a teacher and a great coach. for Girl’s Softball, defensive back coach for football and the best darn Girl’s basketball coach. He always treated everyone fairly and treated the girls like ladies. And then I got kidney disease and needed a kidney transplant.. Each one of the kids could have donated a kidney, but Scott was the one that was chosen. It’s a terrible decision for a Mother to have one of her children donate an organ, but I will be forever grateful to you Scott for giving me the chance to be with Dad and our family and to enjoy our posterity and remember the memories and share in the good and the sad times that we have shared. Our lives are made up of many things but a family brings us so many good things and so many wonderful memories that we remember as we grow old. Scott, we pray that there will be many more memories to put into our little memory notebook. We love you and are sure glad you were sent to us to help make our family special. {your mom & dad}
-I would just like to thank you for being a big effect on my life. Here some things I will always remember you for. you have always kept me in line with a tactic called the nork.You have helped many times with my basketball and told me its not how you look its how you play. That is something that has helped me in all of my sporting events. I will always remember all those basketballs you gave to me that you had left over from camps I still use them today. You have made your son into a role model that I will always respect and look up to. The biggest thing that you have taught me is to never ever give up neither it be in sports or the biggest one our time here on earth. You have always had an awesome attitude towards things even after you were diagnosed with cancer. You never give up and you always give 100%{hayden}
-It was never about you, you made it about us. I can tell that your joy came from your families joy. I can only hope that I can take your example and try to be a father like you are. I wonder if before you came to this world you agreed to the trial of your illness because you wanted to experience it all while you were here. Maybe because it would teach your family vital life lesions that we needed to know so that we could be together forever. I do know that your example gives me something that I will spend my life reflecting on and striving to emulate because every step that I follow will also lead me to the Savior. I love you so much and I am more than honored to be apart of your family. {sam}
-Right now I am on my mission in Trinidad, Bolivia! It really is great, but every day is extremely hard. But who am I to say this is hard? You, Scott Hansen, my hero, but most of all my DAD know what hard is! As I reflect back on the four years that you were sick, not once, not once, not even once do I remember you complaining or quitting, not once! You are what makes me get up every morning wanting to be on my mission! Its the people like you dad who go through so much but remain strong no matter what the circumstance, you are going to bow down at Jesus feet and give thanks for all that you have and have been given, and because of this you will reign with God and Jesus Christ in Heaven! Dad! I know with all my heart that right now that is the case; you are with our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ smiling brighter than the sun! Everyday was the greatest moment I had with you, yeah I had tons of great memories with you, but Honestly dad just seeing you each and everyday made me happy!One thing in particular that I want to thank you for, is how much you loved MOM, you treated her with so much love and respect just like she was the Queen of the world, might I say she is!{jace}
-We remember that he was a great counselor in the bishopric at the student ward and a great high council member and speaker after that. He knew whether someone needed a “Come to Jesus” talk or maybe just a “nork”. It seems now that he will just be out of town for a while; it seems like he will be coming home any day and we will all go to the cabin and have more fun.{lance & linda}
-There is not one single thing that I didn't love and cherish about you. You were one of my biggest role models growing up and I always loved being around you. You are contagious uncle Scott because people desire and thrive to be around you because of the amazing individual that you are. Every memory that I have of you being in my life was not only putting a smile on my face, but on the faces of all those who surrounded us. Your desire to follow the example of our Savior Jesus Christ was an example to us all. Your testimony is so strong in the Gospel of Jesus Christ that there is no question why you have been blessed with such an unbelievable spouse that you will live with for the eternities but you also have been blessed with children who each have a personal testimony in the Gospel. There are no words to even try to explain how influential you have been in so many lives of so many of God's children. You are simply ONE of a kind and I love you. {nick}
-Scott encouraged me towards baptism and then later on serving a mission.
-Though at times it can be difficult to express words of praise or admiration; it is always appropriate to do so, that we may show those for whom we care how we feel. That being said, I cannot think of a more appropriate time than now to share such words, and I cannot think of a more deserving person to share them with. For I have yet to see anyone show the amount of character in the face of struggle and adversity as you do. Truly, you have a profound impact on my life in ways that I could never express adequately in a simple letter. But, that is not my wish, rather it is only my wish to recall a few of the many instances that your character and example have, and continue to, help me to be a better person. I can remember the day the news came very vividly. I was heart-broken to hear that you were diagnosed with such a life-altering disease. This news came at a time of such great difficulty for me in the mission field. There were moments where frustration and grief would overtake me completely, and I would find myself in deep reflection. I could not understand why our Heavenly Father would let such a thing affect such a good person. Luckily, It was then that I was humbled enough to realize, what I really needed was a, as you would say, “come to Jesus”. Shortly thereafter, I came upon the scripture in 2nd Timothy 3:16 which says, “For whom the Lord loveth, he chasteneth.” At first I thought that the word, “chasten,” meant only to discipline or punish. But, upon further review, I realized that the scripture is talking about the trails that the Lord gives us out of love. Now up to this point, never in my life had I ever been so moved by a passage of scripture. I finally began to understand once again that the Lord truly does love us. He allows us to be tried that we may learn; as well as those around us, from our experiences, and grow closer to him. Little did I know that this simple personal revelation, coupled with your example, would help me at a later stage in my life.I have always believed that:
“The character of a man is not best measured in his time of triumph, rather, in his time of struggle.” {tanner}
-I’m so thankful for my wonderful wife and the amazing parents that she had that have made her the women she is today. It is because of you and your wonderful wife that my honey has become an amazing mother and wife. I know that you are so proud of her but if you truly saw the strength and faith that I see in her every day you would be amazed.. I know that the moments and memories will never stop and I am so grateful for that. Thanks for all that you have done for me and my small family. You will never know how much my life has been influenced by your example. I consider it one of the greatest blessings of my life the day that I became a part of your family. {ryan}
Happy Birthday Dad! We all really miss you.
3 comments:
No matter how many times I read them I bawl! Thanks for posting these wonderful memories and words about our amazing dad. I am so glad he touched the lives of so many people while he was on earth. We are all better because of him!
Wow that was such an emotional read! I cried through them all, especially what your mom and jace wrote. I think it is so sweet and special that so many people mentioned how obviously your dad showed his love to your mom. Is there any greater mark of a man than that? You should know that your dad changed my life too. Both at Highland and since. He was a truly amazing man and I know he is continuing to do truly amazing things still!
Beautiful - thank you for sharing.
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