Here is the lovely peice Beulah Vega wrote for the Pegasus Theater website:

As most of you know, one of the defining members of our Pegasus Family passed away on October 31st. I would like to take a moment to write about her and her legacy.
The first time that I actually sat down and had a conversation with Nancy Hansen there were three of us; an Atheist, a Baptist, and an Apache; yes, it sounds like the set up to a horrible and insensitive joke, but, in fact, it was quite the opposite. We were on the steps of Burbank Auditorium at Santa Rosa JC and we had just gotten out of our "acting styles" class. Somehow, whatever we had been doing in class that day led to a conversation about politics, culture and religion. Now as everybody these days can tell you, those three topics usually lead to a lot of yelling, but not this time. The three of us came from very different belief structures and we disagreed on almost everything, but there was no yelling or anger or name calling and when we walked away from that conversation all of us had a newfound respect for the other two even in the matters where we disagreed.
Nancy was good at respectfully communicating. She never compromised her beliefs, but she did not belittle us for not sharing them and she listened when we spoke of our beliefs. So what does that have to do with an Artistic Director message on a theater page? Nancy was one of my role models and indeed I was nervous taking over the job of Artistic Director from her as she had been so instrumental in defining Pegasus. But I always remember that conversation, I remember the respect and the willingness to listen to differences and the way that respect let us come away as a new micro community of friends. That was a very valuable lesson for me as a person and as an artist.
The West County community has a rich and varied assortment of stories to share. We have had vastly different life experiences. We often have different beliefs even when we generally agree. We as a community were lucky to have Nancy to show us, by her example, to work with our differences, to create worthwhile productions through respectful collaboration.
We move forward into a season that is about the West County. These are stories being told by people of Sonoma County which cover a broad range of life experiences. This is a season about listening to our neighbors without judgement. This is a season about questioning what we think of when we hear certain catchphrases. And moving forward this season will lead us into a new era of what our community theater is, and what it can be doing for our community. And as we move forward we honor Nancy’s willingness to listen without judgement, and speak honestly and without fear, by redefining what it is be a community theater, speaking for the community and not preaching at it.

— Beulah Vega, Artistic Director, Pegasus Theater

Nancy and Hank 1992.

Quote

"Finding the wonderful universe inside seems to involve revisiting the wonderful world of the outside as well - from beautiful views, amazing insects and other critters and the wonderful people I’m so lucky to have as family and friends."

Nancy 10/21/16

1970s

Tech High History

The is from the Tech High website, Oakland Tech Centennial.

Here is the link to the original post:

http://oaklandtech.com/staff/centennial/2015/03/14/nancy-hansen-53/

Obituary

NANCY JAN HANSEN

Kind, charming, intellectual and artistic Nancy Hansen passed away peacefully at home in Villa Grande on October 31, 2016.

She was born on September 15, 1935 in Alameda, California to Juna and Bill Hansen.

Her early years were spent at public schools in Oakland, where she formed many life-long friendships and developed an early sense of social justice and morality, most particularly in the socratic seminars of Hyman (“Doc”) Haydis. She had many happy memories of working at Feather River Family Camp. Throughout her childhood and young adult years Nancy studied ballet with Raoul Pause at his studio in Oakland. After graduating from Oakland Technical High School in 1953, she started her university studies and studied theater with Hedwiga Reicher in Los Angeles .

In 1961 she graduated from U.C. Berkeley with a Bachelor's Degree in Dramatic Art, married and started her family. In the 60s she cared for her own two daughters and godson, as well as many other young ones in her home daycare business in Berkeley, where she was also involved with the performing arts and cultural invigoration of the times.

Nancy worked as a professional, and for the love of it, at many Bay Area theaters and film companies, and developed The Actors School in Albany in 1970.

She spent twenty five years in administrative positions, pioneering programs in bioethics during the 70’s and 80’s at Providence Hospital in Oakland, San Leandro Hospital, Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital and Laguna Honda Hospital in San Francisco. (1970 - 1995)

In 1981 she discovered the small community of Villa Grande on the Russian River, and soon purchased the Rose Cottage that would be her favorite home and a treasured weekend getaway for friends and family, who were sure to find engaging conversation, fun scrabble and crosswords, along with a glass of chardonnay, on the sometimes sunny deck among the redwoods.

In retirement in 1997 she enjoyed studies in ballet, history and theater at Santa Rosa Community College as well as travels to Europe and yearly reunions with her group of grammar school girlfriends.

In these years she began her community involvement with Pegasus Theater in Monte Rio as an actor, director, box office manager, sometime set painter and all round community member, eventually serving as Artistic Director for ten years between 2003 and 2013.

She is survived by her daughters Kristin Argue and Tati Argue, grandson Athos Argue-Hassanein, sister Kip Hudson and brother-in-law Jay Hudson, nephews Bill Hudson (Kasey) and John Hudson (Jan) and great-nieces and nephews, cousin Diane Cosgrove Barth, godson Aaron Baldwin and his family, the Zergers, the Dutchers, Tech High class of 53, the Robb-Wilders, Mark Gregory Wichorek, the Argues, Pegasus Theater, JoAnne Young, the House-Edmunds,  Noel Yates, the Sampsons, the Boschs, Ray Gerba, Friends of Villa Grande and many more dear friends from the Bay Area and the River. During her life she had meaningful personal partnerships with John Argue, Joseph Riley and Dan McCarty.

Nancy was predeceased by her dearest friend, Hank McDonnell, with whom she shared many of these activities from the year 1939 to 2002, as well as brilliant conversations, love of the arts, courage of convictions and copious laughter.

Gifts in her memory may be made to Friends of Villa Grande (villagrande.org) or Pegasus Theater (pegasustheater.com).

There will be a celebration of her life January 7th, at the Monte Rio Community Center, at 2:00.