Larry Oke Hanson, age 82 of Cherokee, IA, passed away Wednesday, January 29, 2025, at the Good Samaritan Society in Holstein, IA. A Memorial service and visitation were held Sunday, February 2, 2025, at the Greenwood-Schubert Funeral Home in Cherokee, IA. Pastor David Hall officiated. Online condolences may be sent to the family at www.greenwoodfuneral.com.
The graveside service is at Oak Hill Cemetery on Sunday May 4, 2025, at 12:30pm. Pastor David Hall will officiate. Service will be followed by a celebration of life at 5478 R Ave, Cherokee, IA at 1:30pm-4:30pm. Food and beverages will be served.
Obituary
Larry Oke Hanson, the son of Oke and Betty (Ferrin) Hanson was born May 18, 1942, in Le Mars, IA. His childhood years were spent in Cherokee, IA where he attended school and graduated from Washington High School. Larry then moved to Seattle, WA and attended two years of college at an electrical technician school. Upon earning his degree, he enlisted in the US Navy in 1960.
Larry made a career in the Navy where he served as a Sonar Technician. He served on several destroyers: the USS Cunningham, USS Hanson, USS Hamner, USS W.M. Wood, and the USS Basilone. On one Vietnam deployment, he served as the Ship Master at Arms in charge of security and boarding parties off the Vietnam coast. He continued his military service until his retirement in 1980.
On August 20, 1964, Larry was united in marriage to Jan Anderson. Together, they welcomed two daughters Lora and Elizabeth. They lived in Hawaii, San Diego, and Virginia Beach while he was in the military. They later moved back to Cherokee, IA, where he worked as an electronic technician for Iowa Office Supply in Storm Lake.
Larry was an avid outdoorsman who loved black powder guns, riding mules in the back country, and pretty much anything that involved the outdoors. He was a member of the Buck Skinner Group and American Mountain Men. He was featured in a 2015 article in National Geographic during a 100 plus mile ride from Wyoming into Montana for a rendezvous. He enjoyed spending time at the Cherokee Rendezvous and was an avid gun collector. He enjoyed tending to and training his mules and spending time with his black labs over the years.
He was preceded in death by his parents, Oke and Betty Ferrin.
He will lovingly be remembered by his daughters and their husbands, Lora (Gary) Strahmann of Aurora, CO, and Elizabeth (Timothy) Volf of Manson, IA; grandchildren, Brittany and husband Nick of Bellevue, NE, Brandon and his wife Kayla of Polk City, IA, William Strahmann of Wells, ME, Sarah Strahmann of Aurora, CO; great grandchildren Niko, Noah, and Nolan Hatjinos (Volf), and Thea Volf; Brother and sister-in-law Mike and Jean Hanson of Atlanta, GA and two nieces, Lisa Shuping and husband Trent of Smyrna, GA; Karin Bosh and husband Kyle of Yaounde’, Cameroon.
