George O. Hansen

George O. Hansen Of Arlington HeightsGeorge O. Hansen, a 57-year resident of Arlington Heights passed away on May 5, 2020, at Northwest Community Hospital, of complications related to Myelodysplastic Syndrome. He was 88. A native of Chicago’s Northwest Side, Mr. Hansen was the only child of the late Oscar Hansen, an Illinois General Assembly member from 1952 through 1964, and Violet M. Gerharz. He attended St. Mel’s High School, where his studies included architectural drafting. Through mutual friends, he met Joan Stumpfhaus, a Schurz High School student. and they dated while he studied at Loyola University and Joan entered Northern Illinois University. George enlisted with the U.S. Air Force in 1953 during the Korean conflict. Prior to active duty, George proposed to Joan and they were married on a steamy August 22, 1953, at Saint Viator Church in Chicago. With an honorable discharge in 1954, and Joan expecting child, George accepted a Delta Star Electric Company offer as an electric design draftsman. Somehow he squeezed-in evening classes at Loyola. Two years later American Sterilizer Company, the leading U.S. hospital equipment maker, offered George a sales position. He accepted and remained with the firm for 43 years. Initially, he was based in West Virginia and Washington, D.C., calling on Mid-Atlantic private and governmental health care providers. He returned to Chicago in 1962 to focus on the expanding Midwest market. In addition to equipment, George provided niche design services for projects like Loyola University’s Maywood medical school (1965), Saint Alexius Hospital (1966) and Northwest Community Hospital’s post-1959 expansions.During the 1970s and through 2000, George traveled worldwide for re-named Steris Corporation offering equipment and design services for international hospital projects, notably in China and the Baltic republics. In recognition of his design contributions, George regularly served on the judging panel for the American Institute of Architect’s Academy for Heathcare Architecture “charrette” competition for aspiring health care architecture students.George retired from Steris in 2000. In 2009 he was formally recognized by the Bellwether League, a health-care industry society, for his contribution to the advancement of health-care architecture and equipment supply chain management.

Socially, George and Joan were active members of the former Plum Grove Club in Palatine. They celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary in 2003 and in the following years spent winter months in Palm Springs, California near Joan’s sisters. A couple of winters were spent in Sydney, Australia.Hansen is survived by Joan, three children, and two grandchildren. Interment at Saint Michael the Archangel Cemetery in Palatine is private. A memorial celebration will be scheduled for family and friends at a future date. In lieu of flowers, the family requests a donation to the MDS Foundation.Condolences can be given at www.GlueckertFH.com or (847) 253-0168.