Celebrations are normally a recognition of days, a yearly reminder of an event that brought joy into our lives, such as birthdays, weddings, or anniversaries. This past August, a different kind of celebration took place. August 14, 1955, RWC English Professor Barbara Hansen was involved in an automobile accident that would leave her paralyzed from the chest down. This, of course, is not a fond memory by any account; it is the time spent after the accident that we are celebrating. According to Professor Hansen, she is celebrating “Fifty years of overcoming and moving forward,” years in which she earned her doctorate and, for the past 38 years, taught here at UC.
Apart from teaching, Professor Hansen has also authored a well-known book entitled The Strength Within: Find your Life Anchors and Cultivate the Habits of Wholeness, Hope, and Joy.
“Our choices and attitudes shape the person we are and cultivate an inner strength that endures despite life’s ups and downs,” she says. “By focusing on who we are, rather than on what we have, meaning comes splashing back into our lives.”
Here at the Raymond Walters branch of UC, it is hard to not be affected by Professor Hansen. Her work has helped create what both students and faculty have come to know as an exciting and pleasurable education experience. Lives have been changed through classroom or social interactions in which one encounters her uplifting personality and unequivocal gift for teaching.
“How many people,” states Hansen, “have the good fortune to do what they love every day of their lives? I do. I love teaching and writing, and as a professor and an author, I’ve been able to follow those passions. That, to me, is living a joyful life.”
Thank you, Professor Hansen, for sharing your gift with all of us.