Derek Hanssen

Derek Aaron Hanssen

1985 - 2019

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Obituary of Derek Aaron Hanssen

It is with much sadness that we announce the passing of Derek at his home in Excelsior, on February 12, 2019. He was 33 years old.

 

Derek was diagnosed with encephalitis at the age of seven, and battled with seizures for the rest of his life. He was later diagnosed with epilepsy. Dereks shoulders dislocated about 30 times, which further complicated the seizures. Despite all this, he maintained a positive attitude.

 

Derek was born in St. Louis Park, Minnesota on September 9, 1985, the son of Paul and Leann Hanssen, and the brother to Whitney. Derek was an easy going, happy kid who loved fishing on North Arm Bay. He had a strong connection with his late Grandpa Rome. They enjoyed many summers eating grilled cheese sandwiches together. Derek and Whitney’s favorite activities included looking for golf balls and catching fireflies in the woods in front of their house, and sledding on the golf course.

 

Derek developed many friendships in school that continue to this day. He opened his heart to anyone. He graduated from Mound Westonka Senior High School in 2004. After the devastation of ending high school, and not being able to see his friends every day, Derek did not rush off to college. He had a variety of part-time jobs before he went to college at the age of 23. He graduated in 2015 from Minnesota State University Moorhead with a B.S. in Operations Management. Throughout college, he worked for Forum Architects & Consultants, Inc. and continued to work for them until he passed away. He inspected and reported on commercial construction projects.   

 

Fishing for sunnies on North Arm Bay developed into a lifelong love of the water. His specialty was spearfishing while free driving. His love of the ocean drew him to Australia, Tonga, Thailand, Myanmar and the Phillipines to go spearfishing. He also went on diving trips with his dad and Uncle Peter. While in Myanmar, he went on a 5 day trek through the jungle to the long neck tribe. He made friends everywhere he went. Despite his health conditions, he chose to live the fullest life he could.

 

Apart from travelling, Derek truly cared about his friends from Mound. His goal was to get his friends together to spread love to everybody. In this, he was very successful. He also enjoyed hunting, cooking, broomball, and volleyball. His favorite breakfast was biscuits and gravy. He was especially fond of his dog Yoda. He loved his goddaughters Nell and Winnie like they were his own kids.  

                                                                                                                                                         

Please join us in celebrating his life at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Navarre.

Saturday
23
February

Visitation

2:00 pm - 3:00 pm
Saturday, February 23, 2019
Good Shepherd Lutheran Church
3745 Shoreline Drive
Wayzata, Minnesota, United States
(952) 471-8433
Saturday
23
February

Memorial Service

3:00 pm - 4:00 pm
Saturday, February 23, 2019
Good Shepherd Lutheran Church
3745 Shoreline Drive
Wayzata, Minnesota, United States
(952) 471-8433
Saturday
23
February

Fellowship Hall Gathering

4:00 pm - 5:00 pm
Saturday, February 23, 2019
Good Shepherd Lutheran Church
3745 Shoreline Drive
Wayzata, Minnesota, United States
(952) 471-8433