Wilford Nels Hansen

Wilford Nels Hansen, 88, of River Heights, Utah, passed away August 22, 2016. He was born in
1928 to Nels and Maggie Ann (Pritchett) Hansen in Cardston, Alberta, Canada, near Hillspring
where his family owned a ranch on the Belly River. He was the youngest of 7 children. When
Wilford was 2, the family moved to western Idaho, living on ranches in Council and Parma. As a
young boy Wilford worked hard on the ranches. He especially enjoyed riding the huge plow
horse to clean out the irrigation canals and enjoyed riding on the back of the massive-but-gentle
Herford bull named “Grandpa.” But ranch life and formal education were hard to blend.
Wilford ended up in Boise going to school and staying with his sister Bertha’s family.
In spite of his love for his family, and for ranching, Wilford chose to leave the rural life to
become a scientist. He graduated from Brigham Young University with a Bachelor of Science
degree in chemistry in 1951. While at BYU he met Vada Johnson, also from Alberta. Wilford
knew that Vada’s congeniality would temper his social awkwardness. They married in the Salt
Lake Temple in 1951. Wilford continued his education at Iowa State University, earning his
Ph.D. in chemistry in 1956. He worked for Atomics International as a research scientist in Los
Angeles from 1956-7, then returned to Iowa State as a research associate in 1957 and to BYU as
an assistant professor of chemistry from 1958-60. He then moved back to Los Angeles to work
for AI, then to Thousand Oaks, California, in 1962 to work for North American Aviation (later
NA Rockwell) as a research scientist and consultant for other companies and institutions. While
living in Thousand Oaks, he was elected to the Ventura County School Board for six years,
serving as president for two years. In 1968, he accepted a faculty position at Utah State
University and moved his family to Logan, Utah. He served as a professor of physics and
chemistry until his retirement in 1996. He was world-renowned as a scientist. Among his many
notable accomplishments was his guest professorship at the Fritz Haber Institute in Berlin,
Germany, 1977-78 and 1984, writing many research papers with colleagues in Germany and
other European countries. Wilford published more than 100 scientific papers on magnetism,
optics, surface physics and electrochemistry, and owned many patents for experimental devices.
Perhaps his most cited contribution to the scientific literature involved establishing mathematical
equations for calculating the optical properties of multiple layers of thin optical coatings, which
equations are still used in computer models today. In 1989, he was asked by the State of Utah to
serve on the State Cold Fusion Exploratory Committee. He replicated the Pons/Fleischmann
cold fusion experiments multiple times, developing new techniques for dynamically analyzing
excess heat. He was awarded the Governor’s Medal of Honor for Science and Technology.
Wilford and Vada were the parents of six children: Wilford (Bill) Jr. (Lisa), Galen (Jennifer),
Vaylene (Kurtis Tucker), Loreita (Neal Dewey), Dwayne (Jolene), and Cynthia (David Glenn).
Wilford wanted his family to work hard and play hard, and his posterity to appreciate natural
phenomena and the complex beauty of nature. He helped create a home where his children, their
friends, students, and their expanding families would feel welcome and would love to gather.
Wilford’s testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ and of eternal families was a guide in his own
life and steady source of strength to his family. He emphasized the importance of being grateful
for what we have been given in life. He had a great sense of humor and a quick wit. He enjoyed
football and boxing in his youth and waterskiing, riding horses, wilderness camping, ping pong
and racquetball with his family in his later years. He loved sharing gospel and scientific ideas
with family and doing outdoor projects with them. He loved unusual and exotic foods. He
enjoyed music and sang in the ward choir.
Wilford and Vada served a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in
Morristown, New Jersey, after their children were grown. Wilford and Vada are a powerful force
for good and leave a legacy of hard work and compassion.
Wilford is survived by his sister Martha Veatch of Boise, Idaho, who was a wonderful, protective
older sister, as well as his six children, and their spouses, 33 grandchildren and 41 great
grandchildren.
The Hansen family especially thanks Xochitl Frankman and her special staff at Autumn Care
Assisted Living Center, Logan, Utah, for their wonderfully loving care for Wilford during the
past two years. There are not enough words to express our gratefulness for their kindness to our
entire family.
The family also thanks Tammy Law and Hospice for Utah for their final care.
We love you Dad. We honor your loving legacy and want to follow you example of faith and
charity.
A viewing will be held Friday evening, August 26, 2016, from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at the
Allen-Hall Mortuary, 34 East Center Street, Logan, Utah. Funeral services will be held at the
Providence Stake Center located at 800 South 600 East, River Heights, Utah, on Saturday,
August 27, 2016, at 12:00 p.m. A viewing will be held prior to the funeral from 10:30 a.m. until
11:30 a.m.
Interment will be in the Logan City Cemetery. Condolences and memories may be shared at
www.allenmortuaries.net
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