Eugene Ray Hanson was born in Malta, Montana on July 10, 1944 to Lillian and Henry Hanson. He was one of their twelve children. He graduated from Malta High School and soon after married his sweetheart, Linda Jane McPhee. During his time in Malta he also served in the Montana National Guard.

Even before his teen years he began working for the Henderson Dairy and later at the Coast-to-Coast store, both in Malta. Next he began working for the Montana Department of Transportation. A few years later, he and Linda moved from Malta to Wolf Point, Montana, where Gene worked on the construction of highways in Montana, from 1966 to 1993. After retiring from MDT he worked for Prince, INC, until 2012

Gene was an expert hunter and skilled fisherman, but his pride and joy was his garden. People would detour just to drive through his back alley to marvel at how healthy every plant looked. To the astonishment of his neighbors, he always watered his large garden by hand.

But to all of his family and good friends, Gene’s neatest skill was a result of his sense of humor. “He was so funny,” remarked one recently. With his quick wit he often answered with subtle quips that would take recipient a few minutes to catch on before bursting out with laughter. He and his daughter Jennifer competed in challenging the other to come up with a response better than the one just given.

Gene is survived by his wife Linda, daughter Jennifer Rae Sears with her husband Junior and her children Laresa Dale and Alex Dale. He is also survived by sisters Rosie and Greta and several nieces and nephews. Preceding him in death were his parents and his siblings Betty Lou, Jerry, Barbara, Joanne, Phyllis, Patsy, David, Connie and Billy, and his in-laws Rosie and Shey McPhee.

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