Sharon Lee Hansen's Obituary
Sharon Lee Hansen, age 84 of Selbyville, DE, passed away on Friday, April 28, 2023, at AccentCare Hospice Center, in Wilmington, DE. She caused fireworks with her birth on July 4, 1938, in Corry, PA, to her parents, the late Andrew and Audrey Marie (Mason) Hansen.
During 1955 while in high school, Sharon traveled to Denmark and Sweden to learn about her Danish heritage. It was there, she insists, that she learned to drink beer. Her trip lasted eight weeks and along with exploring her heritage, she saw the devastation World War II in Europe had wrought, and it made a lasting impression.
Sharon moved to Philadelphia in 1956 to attend the all-girls Beaver College (now co-ed Arcadia University), graduating in 1960 with a B.S. While girls’ sports were not offered in Sharon’s high school days, by college Sharon was able to participate in field hockey, lacrosse, and basketball. From there, Sharon moved to the Baltimore area, where she lived and worked. From the 1960s through the 80s she was involved in both basketball and fast-pitch softball, where she excelled as a pitcher. In addition, in the early 70s, Sharon took up golf, and besides being a good golfer, was known to be one of the best-dressed players on the course. To round out her sports activities, in 1990 Sharon was elected to the Greater Washington, D.C. Softball Hall of Fame and then in 1997, inducted into the Maryland Women’s Softball Fast Pitch Hall of Fame.
By the early 1970s, Sharon went back to school for her masters in microbiology at the University of Maryland in College Park, continuing later at the University of Maryland Medical School, where, in 1980, she was awarded her PhD. in Pathology, specializing in infectious diseases. Her professional experience took Sharon from research labs at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia in 1961, then to the Baltimore Biological Laboratories in Cockeysville, MD. She then moved in 1971, to the Baltimore VA as Chief of Microbiology, Urinalysis, and Serology. Next came Sharon’s role as Chief of Clinical Pathology at VA. From there, her scientific work took her to the FDA in Gaithersburg, MD, as Chief of Microbiology at the Center for Devices and Radiologic Health. Sharon moved to the VA system from 1971-1990, for supervisory positions and later as a scientific laboratory expert. In addition to Sharon’s laboratory employment, she shared her scientific knowledge with students at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, beginning in 1975, teaching Intro to Clinical Microbiology and going on the become Assistant Professor in the Department of Pathology from 1981-1986 and then Assistant Professor 1987-1993.
Sharon’s employment took her all over the world giving guest lectures and indulging her love for travel, including trips to Belgium, England, Canada, Italy, and Morocco.
Dr. Hansen was a prolific writer, her work appearing in numerous journals and professional papers, including articles in Applied Microbiology (1974), Journal of Clinical Microbiology (1976) and Journal of Clinical Pathology in 1978. She served on the Editorial Board of the American Journal of Infection Control from 1981-1996, was guest editor for the Journal of Clinical Microbiology from 1984-1996, and on the Editorial Board for the publication from 1997-2000. At the end of her career, just before retirement, Dr. Hansen wrote for the Journal for the American Medical Association (JAMA).
Sharon also sat on a multitude of VA Hospital system committees for almost 20 years, from 1971-1990 and on national committees from 1980-1997, including service on the National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards, Chairman of Civil Service Affairs for the American Academy of Microbiology, and many more.
Sharon’s special recognition and achievements included an FDA Commissioner’s Special Citation and an FDA recognition award for work during Desert Storm/Desert Shield in 1992. Upon her retirement from the FDA and VA, on Dec. 31, 1999, Sharon retired to the Rehoboth/Lewes area in Delaware. Her retirement passions included golf (with the CAMP Rehoboth Golf League), where she continued to win best-dressed accolades. Sharon was celebrated for holes in one at both The Rookery and River Run courses. She was also part of the Founder’s Circle for the CAMP Rehoboth Community Center, supported the Rehoboth Beach Film Society and Rehoboth Art League, while developing a wide circle of friends.
In retirement, Sharon continued to travel, including adventures in The Galapagos, Kenya, Tanzania, and the Far East. And if you never tasted her Thai spaghetti, chicken and biscuits, or pork with sauerkraut (always on the Weber), you missed something great.
In addition to her parents, Sharon was preceded in death by her brother, Andrew Mason Hansen. She is survived by her nephew Mark; her nieces: Andrea Hansen and Susan Best; her sister-in-law, Wilda Hansen; and her cherished friend, Patti Duffy.
A memorial service will be held on Wednesday, May 10, 2023, at 11:00 AM, at Parsell Funeral Homes & Crematorium, Atkins-Lodge Chapel, 16961 Kings Highway, Lewes, DE, where friends may visit beginning at 10:00 AM. Interment will be private.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial donations to West Rehoboth Community Land Trust, Inc., PO Box 633, Rehoboth Beach, DE 19971, or www.westrehobothlandtrust.org/donate.html.
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