John Hanson

John Ralph Hanson, 90, of Savanna, died at Genesis East Hospital in Davenport, Iowa on Saturday, May 28, 2016. A graveside service will be held at 1:00 p.m., Friday, June 3, 2016, at Evergreen Cemetery, Hanover, Illinois. A visitation will be held from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon, Friday, June 3, 2016, at Law-Jones Funeral Home, Savanna, Illinois. A memorial fund has been established in John’s memory.
John was born December 21, 1925, in Elizabeth, Illinois, the son of Ralph Stanley and Lois Claire (Isbell) Hanson. He married Anita Peschang on December 29, 1951, at St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church in Hanover. She preceded him in death on November 29, 2014.
John grew up in Savanna, graduating from Savanna Township High School in 1943. He served in the U.S. Army in the European Theater during World War II as a medic and clerk typist. He also played trumpet in the military and in many dance bands, appearing on the BBC program “American Eagle in Britain”, which was re-broadcast in the States.
After the war, he earned a degree in electrical engineering from the University of Illinois and worked initially for General Electric in Philadelphia, Schenectady, and Pittsfield, where his three sons were born. He returned to Aurora, Illinois, in 1957, where his daughter was born. He later earned a degree in mechanical engineering from IIT in 1967.
John is survived by his children, David Hanson of Savanna, Donald (Beth) Hanson of North Aurora, Timothy (Sharon) Hanson of Oxford, Ohio, and Catherine (Leonard Bartkowiak) of Aurora; four grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents; his wife, Anita; and half-brothers, Robert and William Hanson.