Katie Hanson died peacefully on the evening of November 5, 2026 of complications arising from her long-term polycystic kidney and liver disease. A beloved wife, mother, Augustana College professor, church leader, and 36-year resident of Davenport, Iowa, she was 66 years old.

Catherine Lee Hanson was born in Eau Claire, Wisconsin on July 10, 1960 to two recent Luther College students, Eugene and Naomi Hanson. When her father left the ordained Lutheran ministry in small-town North Dakota to serve as a chaplain in Vietnam, she became an Army brat and world traveler. Going by the name Cathy, Katie later attended Hanau (Germany) High School and, in 1978, fulfilled a family tradition by enrolling at Luther, where she took the name Katie and met her future husband, David Crowe. The first of their lifelong great talks began in a campus newspaper office they shared because he was the editor/writer and she the photographer. She earned bachelor’s degrees in English and Education, then moved to Minneapolis, their favorite city, with Dave. They wed on June 16, 1984 in Decorah, her father officiating. The Minnesota State Fair, Guthrie Theater, the Renaissance Festival, and Black Forest Inn for German food were her best times, later augmented by trips to Decorah with her Luther gal pals, the week on Lake Minnetonka with the Larsons, the one hundred books a year she tried to read, most by and about women, and study abroad trips to Italy, France, Germany, Norway, Vietnam, and more.

As a new mom to Michael in 1990, she began to work for Augustana College, where Dave was an English professor. She was a grant writer at first, then as first-year writing instructor, and eventually a professor of education. As Tyler and Emily were born in 1992 and 1995, respectively, she managed her hours by sharing the parenting duties with Dave--one at home and the other on campus for part of every day. She rose to the highest rank open to her, Associate Professor, and earned virtual tenure by becoming indispensable.

For one of Dave’s sabbaticals during the 1999-2000 school year, Katie took care of her kids in Bergen, Norway. There, faced by both challenges and adventures, the family bonded deeply. With the nine- and seven-year-old boys in Norwegian school, Katie and 4-year-old Emily became inseparable. That never changed. All three children graduated from Luther College, so Luther and Norway are deep family loves.

Katie will be honored and remembered for her unflagging energy in mentoring and developing young minds and hearts. First, there are her incredibly smart, strong, and compassionate children, who work in communications, medicine, and teaching. Next, her many loyal and passionate advisees and students, mainly in English education, whom she guided with extraordinary care, like a “flight controller” according to one close friend and colleague.

Finally, she was devoted to the church she and Dave chose and loved, St. Paul Lutheran in Davenport. She ministered and served with classes on spiritual journaling, volunteering in the Madison Market and other food ministries, and mentoring of resident pastors. For more than thirty years, she and Dave co-led the Faithful Readers book group at St. Paul, choosing more than 120 books and leading fun discussions of Christian and interfaith concerns. More than once, she stepped in to coordinate adult learning at the church. Katie Hanson lived out her faith every day of her life through her daily acts of kindness, dedication to teaching and learning, and rejection of cruelty and bigotry.

Katie is survived by her best friend and husband of 42 years, David Crowe, sons Michael (Melissa) Crowe and granddaughters Ellinor (5) and Ingrid (20 months) of Seattle and Tyler (Courtney Juelich) Crowe, daughter Emily Crowe, both of Minneapolis, mother Naomi Hanson, Davenport, siblings Jim (Heidi Faber-Nettrour) Hanson of Ankeny, Iowa, and Suellen (Steve Grove) Hanson of Minneapolis. She was deeply loved by mother-in-law Jane Crowe of Albert Lea, Minnesota and sister-in-law Cathy (Delbert Ihns) Crowe of Lime Springs, Iowa, and also by her nieces and nephews. Katie also adored her yellow labs, first Sandi and now, Winnie. She was preceded in death by her father, Lt. Colonel (Ret.) and Reverend Eugene Hanson and father-in-law Wesley Crowe.

A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. on Tuesday, November 10, 2026, at St. Paul Lutheran Church, 2136 Brady Street, Davenport, Iowa. Visitation will be held from 4 to 6 p.m. Monday, November 9, 2026, at the church. Wheelan-Pressly Funeral Home and Crematory, Rock Island, Illinois, is assisting Katie’s family with arrangements.

Memorial donations may be made to Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library or to St. Paul Lutheran Church for their food ministries in Katie’s memory.