Verella Jean Hansen, 82, of Napoleon, ND, died November 2, 2023 at the Wentz Living Center. Funeral services will be held at 11:00 AM on Friday, November 10, 2023 at Trinity Lutheran Church, Napoleon. Visitation will be held on Thursday, November 9, 2023 from 5:00 - 7:00 PM with a prayer service at 7:00 PM at Feist Funeral Home, Napoleon. Burial will take place at the North Dakota Veterans Cemetery at 11:00 AM on Monday, November 13, 2023.

Jean was born in St. Cloud, MN December 20th, 1940 to Christoph and Martha (Frigen) Biederstedt. In 1942, her family moved to Seattle, Washington where her parents worked in the shipyards. When her father passed away, Martha, Jean, and her older brother Clarence then moved to Ellendale, ND where they could be close other family members. She enjoyed visiting her Uncle Ted's farm, except for the geese that always chased her. Jean graduated from Ellendale High School in 1958.  She was the Homecoming Queen her senior year.  After high school, she attended the Normal Industrial School in Ellendale and got her certificate as a secretary and bookkeeper. She then went to the Twin Cities and worked for Continental Can for several years.  She then returned to Ellendale and worked at the clinic.

In the winter of 1967, she met her future husband on a blind double date arranged by one of the nurses she worked with, who was also friends with Chris Hansen.

On August 31st, 1968, Chris and Jean were married at Redeemer Lutheran Church in McLaughlin, SD. On their 1st anniversary, they took a month-long road trip to Alaska, which Jean loved. They had a special anniversary supper of crab legs at the Focsle restaurant in Seward, AK. She fell in love with the natural beauty of the state. The couple returned there four more times in their camper over the years.

Jean loved traveling and being outdoors. In addition to Alaska, they also toured Canada and much of the United States, Australia, and New Zealand. She also traveled to France with Kirsten.  Jean and Chris spent several winters in Mesa, AZ enjoying the nice weather.  Swimming, hiking, and walking were regular activities for her while in AZ.

She was also a loving and devoted mother. They were blessed with two children: Kurt in 1970 and Kirsten in 1974. They were transferred from Selfridge, ND to Napoleon, ND in 1973 for Chris's job with the Soil Conservation Service, raising their family there.  When they first moved to Napoleon, they rented a farm north of town.  The Sperle's on the neighboring farm came over to welcome them, and have been close family friends since then.  Jean taught Sunday School, was a member of the WELCA group, Homemakers, and the Legion Auxiliary where she held the office of 5th District President at one time. She worked at Cenex part-time and then later was the bookkeeper and clerk at Weigel Hardware until her retirement.  Their family did a lot of camping, which was always quite the adventure, especially with the Hansen luck with the weather.  They even camped their way to Washington, DC with friends one summer.  Jean was always there to listen or offer advice, or just send a note to brighten her kids' day when she knew they needed it.  Jean had a great sense of fashion, too.  She was always dressed to a tee, whether it was casual or dressy, right down to the jewelry, and she made it look so natural.  There was always a smile on her face.

Jean loved making quilts. She helped the Golden Age ladies make quilts and also made many Baptismal quilts for church over the years. She enjoyed making shirts and clothes for her children and husband. Later in life, she created many clothes and quilts for her grandchildren, too.  During her winters in AZ, she joined the Quilters group there and went to many quilt shows. When she wasn't sewing, she enjoyed reading, doing counted cross-stitch, coloring, and being outside.  She was always ready to go babysit her grandkids whenever she was needed.  She loved being a grandmother--her grandchildren held a very special place in her heart and they all have wonderful memories of her.

Chris's retirement job took them all over the state and included lots of hiking and picture taking. Jean took the notes (so they were legible) and the pictures. She was a great photographer. She looked forward to those expeditions. She often got out of the pickup and walked when she felt that a hill was too steep to drive up, even though Chris said they'd be fine. When they were home, Jean and Chris enjoyed getting together with their friends for special dinners and good conversation or just afternoon coffee and goodies.

She was a great baker. She made some impressive cakes for her grandchildren's birthdays including Lightning McQueen, Winnie the Pooh, a baby bear, and Barbie ballgown cakes. The effect of the Barbie cake made it look like Barbie had a unique, edible ballgown every year. Her granddaughter, Alex, loved this because she got a cake and a toy all in one. Making krumkake and spritz cookies at Christmas time was also a fun tradition that her kids and grandkids got to partake in—but someone always had to burn their hand in the process of making krumkake-not on purpose, of course! She would make so many krumkake and spritz that she would fill up the home office with Tupperware. There was always enough to feed a small army. And everyone enjoyed Grandma Jean's buttermilk pancakes.

Jean entered the Napoleon Care Center with Alzheimer's in 2019, when Chris was no longer able to give her the extra care she needed.

She was preceded in death by her parents Christoph and Martha (Frigen) Biederstedt; her brother Clarence (Joyce) Biederstedt; her brother-in-law Harold "Vern" Hansen; her niece Sandra Biederstedt, and foster son Keith Vaulters.

She is survived and will be greatly missed by her loving husband of 55 years, Chris, her children, Kurt (Tonja) Hansen and Kirsten (Darin) Schadler; her grandchildren, Alexandra (William Deane) Hansen, Robert Hansen, Andrew Schadler, and Alyssa Schadler; niece Sharon Pillatzski, nephews; Kris (Ruth) Biederstedt, and John (Sally) Biederstedt, and their families.

Jean's family would especially like to thank the staff at the Napoleon Care Center for their exceptional care and compassion to Jean and her family during her stay there.