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In their blended family they were the parents of five, grandparents of 11 and, since Sunday - four days after they were killed by a ram on their Waitākere property - the great-grandparents of five.
More than 250 mourners gathered under an open air shed at Kumeu Showgrounds this morning to farewell Helge and Gaye Hansen a week after they were found dead on their rural Waitākere property.
Post-mortems confirmed the couple died from injuries caused by an animal, and police shot an aggressive ram when they went to the Anzac Valley Rd property.
The couple loved their family and were “always there to lend a hand”, Hansen’s daughter Leanne Cashin said.
They were especially excited when grandchildren and great-grandchildren joined the family - most recently the bittersweet arrival of their granddaughter’s new baby on Sunday.
“Not the normal capabilities of an 82-year-old man.”
A few months ago, she’d asked the couple to write their life stories, Cashin said.
“Gaye, I thank you for doing that. You made your side [of the funeral] very easy. Dad, nothing. Not a thing for me to go off”, she said to laughter.
Helge and Gaye Hansen were remembered for their generosity and love of life. Photo / Sylvie Whinray
But she spoke of her father’s life farming cattle, sheep and wild goats while raising Cashin and her brother Antony with his first wife, before later moving to Auckland and working in logging.
“I have memories of dad coming home from work one day with a rag wrapped around his foot where he’d put a chainsaw through it.
“Dad had various jobs, and one involved transporting a company’s Lamborghini around the North and South Islands, which must’ve been incredibly memorable as he still talked about it often.”
At one point he bought the bare hull of a boat, later building it into something seaworthy and giving the whole family years of enjoyment.
Later, after he married Gaye in 1989 the “fix-it man” moved around various homes he renovated, with the couple eventually settling in Anzac Valley Rd in 2018.
“Dad and Gaye absolutely loved their neighbours, their space and their animals. They’ve just celebrated their 35th wedding anniversary and they had a wonderful, happy time together.”
More than 250 people gathered to farewell the couple, who were in their early 80s. Photo / Sylvie Whinray
Gaye’s family remembered her childhood in Ponsonby, sharing her own memories growing up in a large family.
“I had a great childhood with seven children in the family. We didn’t have much money but mum and dad always did their best.”
She spent most of her working life first in a shoe store and later in corporate accounts for Telecom.
Between her first and second marriages she had to master many new things, including driving, said her sons Mike and Tony Henderson, and daughter Julie Armstrong.
“She once parked a car not angled to the walls of a dug out garage but quite tightly parallel, which was both legendary and unfathomable. We can only imagine her getting into that position, skidding in Dukes of Hazzard fashion.”
Gaye Hansen's son Mike Henderson, with his brother Tony Henderson and sister Julie Armstrong, spoke to mourners at the funeral for his mother Gaye Hansen and stepfather Helge Hansen. Photo / Sylvie Whinray
His stepfather was someone who gave him “just fantastic advice on life - a true no.8 wire Kiwi bloke”, eldest son Mike Henderson said.
And his mother, her eldest son said - his voice breaking with emotion - was someone who was “always there for me.
Cherie Howie is an Auckland-based reporter who joined the Herald in 2011. She has been a journalist for more than 20 years and specialises in general news and features.
