Terry Hansen

Dr. Hansen passed away in his sleep on Saturday, Jan. 23, 2010.

Terry was born July 5, 1950 in Tacoma. He attended Federal Way High School where he graduated second in his class in 1968.

He went on to attend the University of Washington where he completed his pre-dental requirements in only three years. He was accepted to Northwestern Dental School in 1971 and graduated at the top of his class in 1975. He holds a bachelor of arts in zoology from the University of Washington and a doctor of dental surgery degree from Northwestern. He was a proud alum of both.

He met his loving wife Susan, of 37 years, while lifeguarding in the summer of 1968. They were married in December of 1973 and moved to Chicago, Ill. so Terry could finish dental school.

He started his dental career Dec. 1, 1975 in Freeland, where he practiced until he passed away.

Dr. Hansen was very active in the Snohomish/Island County Dental Society and held positions of vice president, president and past president. He was a delegate for Washington State Dental Association for 25 years and was on the Governmental Affairs Committee for WSDA for a term.

Terry was on the State Board of Dental Examiners, appointed by the governor from 1989-1995 and was on the Dental Quality Assurance Commission for one year.

Terry was also very active in his community and believed in planning, common sense and safety. He helped establish and run South Whidbey Community Swim and he was an earthquake and disaster instructor for the Red Cross for several years.

Terry loved boating, camping, swimming, skiing, exploring and the Beach Boys. Usually you could hear him say, “If it’s not the Beach Boys, it’s not real music!” He loved to travel and enjoyed spending time at their lake home in Spokane and at their timeshare in Florida.

Dr. Hansen loved to tell stories to relax his patients and though he sometimes exaggerated to get his point across, his patients adored him. He was very proud of his work and lived for helping people.

Terry was proudest of all of his wife, his three children and all of his family. They were more often than not the topic of conversation in his office.

He is survived by his loving wife Susan, sons Kristofer and Jeffrey, daughter Jennifer (who he called “Bugs”) and her husband Leslie, his granddaughters Abigail, Lillianne and Isabella, his father Melvin, sisters Rebecca and Priscilla, brother Timothy and their families and countless nieces, nephews, cousins, in-laws and friends. He is preceded in death by mother Lorraine and brother Jerome.

There will be a memorial service at 11 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 30 at Trinity Lutheran Church in Freeland.

In lieu of flowers please make a donation in his name to your local chapter of the American Red Cross or to Snohomish County Dental Foundation.