Our dear friend Dennis Hansen passed away last week. We knew it was coming...Camille told us about a month ago that he had contracted an infection while they were doing something with the device they had put into his brain to control the symptoms of his Parkinsons disease, and they were not able to overcome it  It's pretty crazy that an infection would kill him after all he has been through. 
This device they put in his brain was really quite remarkable and the last time we saw him, he seemed really good...No shaking, or uncontrollable movement.  He was able to carry on a conversation with me and give me a big hug.
I have lots of great memories of Dennis.  Him and Peggy were some of the first friends we made when we moved into the old 6th ward.  I remember when they took their cute family to the temple to be sealed what a sweet experience that was.  We were kind of a tight knit bunch in that ward...it almost seemed too good to be true.  There was just great amounts of love and caring  in that ward that made everyone want to be there and when we were there, there was no apathy...everyone gave 150 percent.  We.became fast friends with the Hansens, Roths, Blakes and Wrights, Burns, Northrup, Neeleys and B Wright families.  We were in a study group with this bunch that was pretty neat. We studied Jesus the Christ and it was great to learn from some of these people who knew the scriptures so well.  It really was so sad when they divided that ward...took years to get over it.  We have remained close with this group even though we didn't see each other as much (crazy how changing the ward boundaries changes everything) and have really enjoyed the reunion now they put our neighborhood back with the old 6th ward folks.  Hansens moved just on the other side of redwood road years ago, but we see them around a lot....best connection is through Camille..Kellen's brother Riley is married to Trisha.
We went to Lake Powell with this bunch several times and to Newport with them too.  One of my favorite memories was when we rented a house boat together.  We didn't have any other watercraft for some reason, I think boats had broke down, so to make some fun we loaded everyone onto the water weenie and pulled that behind the house boat.  We survived some wild storms down there with this bunch too.  We always had way more people than you should have packed onto the house boat...we figured everybody just sleeps on top anyway so it didn't matter...until we had to pack everybody inside during a rainstorm...then we got to know each other real well.  Those experiences kind of bond you together for life.
We started going down to Newport beach every summer in about 1985.  Brian and Carla invited us that first year and it was a hoot.  The Hansens became regulars a few years later and we enjoyed hanging with them on the beach and spending lazy evenings out in front of the condo gabbing.
Dennis and Peggy were great Utah fans also and we used to sit with them at the basketball games.
Dennis has had Parkinson's disease for 17 years...hard to believe that much time has gone by.  He has surely suffered more than anyone should ever have to.  Peggy has been such a rock and loving care giver.  At the viewing she looked like she had been to hell and back....just totally  frazzled and exhausted.  My heart breaks for her...she has spent the past 17 years caring for this man, then the past month, pretty much caring for him night and day....now she is just lost..  Dennis will surely be missed by all.