James Elwell Hannem

OREGON-James Elwell Hannem, age 87, of Oregon, passed away on Thursday, Aug. 4, 2016, at home after a short illness. His five children had the honor of taking him on one last family trip and took their dad to Minnesota completing his final wish and allowing him to visit his cousin, John Gordon; sisters, Lois (Hannem) Schultz and Carol (Hannem) Krause, their families; and his nephew, Bruce Hannem. In addition, they also visited the Main Lodge from Basswood Lodge, The Main Lodge was originally located in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area (BWCA) near Ely, Minn., where Jim had worked and met his late wife, Audrey. The Lodge is now the visitor center for Forts Folle Avoine Historical Park in Danbury, Wis. They also visited the resting places of his parents and grandparents. Jim was born on Oct. 2, 1928, in Shevlin, Minn, the oldest child of Olaf and Leonore (Thorp) Hannem, moving to Bemidji, Minn. at age three. After graduating from Bemidji High School, he worked in Forestry on Basswood Lake near Ely, Minn. He was drafted into the U.S. Army and served from 1950 to 1952, stationed in Korea during the Korean War where he obtained the rank of Sergeant First Class and where he started his life long career of being a chef. After receiving an honorable discharge from the service, Jim went on to graduate from the Dunwoody Institute's Baking School in Minneapolis, Minn., and The Culinary Institute of America in New Haven, Conn. Jim then returned, working as a chef at The Basswood Lodge, Ely, Minn. He married Audrey Gayle Mitchell on Sept. 10, 1955. Moving his family to Oregon, Wis. in 1958, he worked for The Prophet (Greyhound) Food Service as the food service manager at Edgewood College and then at UW-Whitewater. In 1973, Jim became the Kitchen Manager for The Heritage House Smorgasbord, in Madison, Wis. working there for over 25 years until its closing in 1998. Jim then went on to work for Queen Anne's Catering/Westside Businessman's Club in Madison, Wis., until its closing in 2013 and retired at the age of 85. He was a faithful member of The Oregon Masonic Lodge No. 151 and The Order Eastern Star No. 49 for over the past 50 years. Jim proudly cooked the annual oyster stew dinner for the Mason's Annual election of officers meeting for over the past 40 years, a tradition he kept up until the very end. He was a proud member of the American Legion Post No. 501 of Madison, the Brooklyn/Oregon VFW Post No. 10272. Jim was forever grateful for the opportunity to go on the Badger Honor Flight, in 2014, escorted by his son, Mike. Jim is survived by his children, James (Cynthia) Hannem of Stoughton, Wis., Wendy (Allen) Dennis of Oregon, Wis., Rebecca (Gary) Fogleman of Tallahassee, Fla., Christine (Lee) Frederickson of Oregon, Wis., and Mike (Connie Sigman) Hannem of Brooklyn, Wis.; grandchildren, Sam and Audra Frederickson, and Emily and Elysia Fogleman; sister, Lois (Carl) Schultz, Aiken, Minn., and Carol Krause, Bemidji, Minn; along with many nieces, nephews, relatives and friends. He was preceded in death by his parents; wife, Audrey; brothers, Ronald and Paul Hannem; nephew, Robert Hannem, and brother-in-law, Curt Krause. A memorial gathering will be held Tuesday, Aug. 9, 2016 at the OREGON MASONIC LODGE, 201 Park St., Oregon, from 4:30 p.m. until 8 p.m., with a Masonic and Eastern Star service beginning at 7:00 pm. The family would like to thank the staff at the VA Hospital, especially Erinn Mullan, N.P. and Agrace HospiceCare for their care and compassion. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that memorials be made to the Badger Honor Flight in Jim's name at (http://www.badgerhonorflight.org/donate). Online condolences may be made at www.gundersonfh.com. Gunderson Oregon Funeral & Cremation Care 1150 Park Street (608)835-3515