Thomas J. Hanson

Thomas J. Hanson was born in Boston, MA, on August 3, 1922, and died on April 27, 2023 in the VA Hospital in West Roxbury, MA. He was predeceased by his parents, Charles and Bridget Agnes (Walsh) Hanson, his sister, Helen M. Breen and his brother Charles (Buddy) Hanson. “Uncle Tom” leaves behind five nephews and nieces: Fr. Francis Breen MM, Maryknoll, NY; William Breen, Dunnellon, FL; Ann Marie O’Malley, Sharon, MA; Patricia McNamee, Foxborough, MA; and Michael Breen, Hillsdale NJ. In addition, he leaves behind seven grand-nephews and nieces, and two great-grand-nephews and nieces.

Tom, the youngest of the three siblings, grew up in the South End of Boston, in several apartments on or near Columbus Avenue. As part of the “Greatest Generation” he lived through the Great Depression and then became a soldier in World War II. Despite living during these challenging times, Tom made the best of his opportunities and lived a very fulfilling, rewarding and spiritual life.

During his boyhood and young adulthood in the 1930s and 1940s he began a lifelong love for jazz and big band music, later buying scores of 78 rpm records playing this type of music. In his late 90’s, he took great satisfaction in listening to the “Jukebox Junction” on Sirius XM, entertaining everyone with anecdotes about the particular Big Band being played.

After leaving high school Tom worked in Boston for several years until the United States entered the Second World War. In 1942 he joined the U.S. Army and did training in Texas – a stint that included driving a jeep from Houston to Fort Bliss in El Paso, even though he had never driven before, a task that enabled him to earn a driving license.

In Europe he fought in several battles including the Battle of the Bulge. On Bastille Day, July 14, 2018, the Government of France awarded Tom the French Legion of Honor medal in commemoration of his fighting in two battles in France that eventually led to the liberation of Paris. He fortunately was never wounded in battle and returned to the United States at the end of the war to resume his life in America.

Tom took advantage of the GI Bill and studied at both Suffolk and Boston Universities, earning a Bachelor of Finance Degree and two Masters Degrees, one in Education and the other in History. With these degrees he embarked on a long career in teaching, beginning in American schools in Europe. He returned to the United States in the 1950s and taught in both Arlington and Athol, MA. In 1961 he accepted a teaching position in the Bronx, New York, where he remained teaching up to his retirement in 2012. Even after retirement he continued to volunteer at the school, primarily by teaching Art to the young children. He was well liked by his students and often met some of them on the streets of New York where they conversed and reminisced about their time in his class. In addition to a lively manner of teaching, he also used to arrange and pay for several trips for the students during the school year.

Services from the Gillooly Funeral Home, 126 Walpole Street, (Rt. 1A) NORWOOD on Wednesday May 3, 2023 at 10:00 AM. Funeral Mass in St. Catherine of Siena Parish, 547 Washington Street, Norwood at 11:00 AM. Visiting Hours in the Funeral Home on Tuesday May 2, 2023 from 4:00-8:00 PM. Interment Highland Cemetery, Norwood.