RIP Butch

JG Pasterjak wrote: Been scanning a ton of old photos tonight and I thought you guys would get a kick out of this one. Allegedly my wife was conceived in that car, which I think makes my mother in law a bonafide superfreak. jg

Woah.

Sadness aside, for a moment, let me share an anecdote about some advice my dad once gave me – it is entirely true and is very telling about how I’ve come to have the “obtuse” sense of humor that I have: Leaving the house to go on my first date, my father stopped me and said: “Son, after you pick her up, the first place you need to go is a pharmacy. Park and tell her to wait in the car. Explain that you’re going inside to buy some condoms. If she is still in the car when you get back….you’re good to go. If not, you saved yourself a few bucks.” Seems crude, but in reality, it was simply my dad’s twisted way of saying: “Son, the virtues of honesty and being straight-forward are of paramount importance. If you can’t be honest with someone about your intentions, then either your intentions or that person don’t fit within your life.” Ivan (youngest son)

friedgreencorrado wrote:

JG Pasterjak wrote: Been scanning a ton of old photos tonight and I thought you guys would get a kick out of this one. Allegedly my wife was conceived in that car, which I think makes my mother in law a bonafide superfreak. jg

Woah.

Sure it was "in" the car? Just sayin that with the top down....

Joking aside, I really wanted to express my condolences at your loss. I know I miss my grandfather, who sounds like a similar (if not older) soul and I still use some of his favorite catch phrases when I work on my cars.

Just because of the lack of physical presence, doesn't mean the person is gone if you remember them. Sounds like you've got a great start with the memories, thank you for sharing them with us BTW.

Sorry to hear about your loss. The Si will get in on the memorial.

The stripe is awesome on that triumph looks to be 3 color most British cars come with a factory picnic basket and blanket

Looks just like my old TR3, but mine didn't have the stripe.

We never got around to the old hibbity jibbity in that thing.

And as you'd expect, they had a full house for the service.

Good to hear.

Nice celebration of life showed by his friends and family one could only hope for the same .

Sorry man. I lost my Father In Law, and really good friend/drinkin buddy right before Christmas. His granddaughter won't know him like I did and that breaks my heart. Sounds like the rest of the world lost two badass motherberkeleyers recently. I am truly sorry. Stay strong for mama.

Mike

David S. Wallens wrote: And as you'd expect, they had a full house for the service.

It was a fine crowd of decent folk. At one point Margie and I wondered if we'd ever be able to pull numbers like that. The service was held in the 4000 square foot garage he built for himself when they retired to Florida a few years ago. Although a lot of cool hardware came through the doors over the years we came to the conclusion that the shop was just an excuse to make sure he had a place to spend time with friends. It was the Honeycomb Hideout with a two-post lift.

Around the corner from their house is the Little Tomoka Yacht Club, which is remarkable in that it is nowhere near any body of water. He was a fixture at the bar within a month of moving here, and they hosted the post-ceremony lunch.

The marquee at the "Little T" currently reads:

"In Loving Memory of Butch Hansen

Steaks Prime Rib

Rock Shrimp"

I can think of no better way to be memorialized. That is straight up gangsta right there.

Instead of the family getting up and talking, I shot some interviews with my mother in law, Butch's brother, my wife and her two brothers and made a little video presentation. I wanted to do something a little more personal, and give them a chance to communicate free of crowds and microphones. Honestly, it was a pretty wrenching experience spending a day editing everything and going through all the old photos, many of which I had never seen before. It's tough enough to live with the grief, but when you have to sit there for hours and try to dissect the guy's life and tell his story in 15 minutes poring over all those images and memories, man, that's not something I'm excited to experience again. Still, I think the family did an awesome job at putting an exclamation point on his life.

If you'd like a look you can see it here.

Oh, and thanks for all the kind words. My wife has been emailing the thread to a bunch of folks in the family and they've gotten a huge kick out of it. They love that so many folks that never met Butch still "get" him so well.

jg

A car guy and a war vet. I raise a beer in his memory.

.... and then subsequently drink that beer. Obviously.