Donna Kowallis Hansen
We all loved Calvin. He was always a kind, gentle, lovely individual.
I remember when he was a young scout how he enjoyed going down below the First Dam on the Island on hot summer nights when the frogs were croaking in the swampy areas, to hunt them and roast their legs. They were a delicacy for the boys and a fun pastime.
In those early days of our lives, again, on hot summer nights we enjoyed playing with the neighborhood children games such as Run My Sheepy Run, Hide N Seek, Kick the Can, etc., until it cooled so it was tolerable to go in the house to sleep. We didn't have swamp coolers or air conditioning then.
And I also have to mention the boat Karl built out of tin and tar. I don't know how he found all of that stuff but there were raw edges you could tear your skin on and he and Cal paddled that thing back and forth in the open irrigation ditch in front of our house gleefully giving rides to everyone, To me that ditch looked like a canal.
In high school he developed a passion for photography. He loved to walk up by the Temple and take pictures of the deep, beautiful, fresh snow draped all over the magnificent hill and clinging gracefully from the branches of the trees. He loved taking pictures of scenes.
When he returned from the Service he had a strong desire to serve a mission. He served under Oscar McConkie, Sr. in Southern California. The second year of his mission he was given the opportunity to serve without purse or script. This effort to serve is what truly made him into the sweet, kind, loving individual he became.
When he returned from the service he stopped in Ogden to see me, and again, when he returned from his mission he stopped to see me. That meant a lot to me, and that is when he met my roommate Rada Hall and you know the rest of that story.
I always struggled with my eyesight and had to wear such heavy lenses and so hated to wear them. When Cal and Rada returned from Optometry school, he was able to help me have the best eyesight I had ever experienced. He told me I was legally blind but with Contact Lens he gave me a whole new world of being able to see. I will always be very grateful to him for that.
Our families shared many wonderful memories together between the Uintah Basin and Salt Lake City. Rada I love you and your family so much.