Laura Clark-Hansen

BROOKLYN-Laura E Clark-Hansen, age 62, of Brooklyn, passed away peacefully on Wednesday, November 30, 2016 at Agrace Hospice & Palliative Care surrounded by her family. She was born in Madison on November 27, 1954, the daughter of Robert and Patricia (Aspel) Clark. Laura attended the UW-Madison, receiving a B.A . in Theater. She was an actress at the Fireside Dinner Theatre in several productions and starred as Dolly in "Hello Dolly" in 1981. While at the Fireside, she met her husband Paul Hansen and they were married on June 16, 1984 in Madison. They moved to Minneapolis where Laura earned her Masters Degree in Human Development from St. Mary's University. While in Minneapolis, Laura was a voice over talent in many commercials and acted in productions at the Park Square Theater, the Theater in the Round, The History Theater and Troupe America and performed for five years in the Minneapolis production of "Nunsense". She was Co-founder of Recovery Productions. She cowrote and acted in the play "Life on the Rocks" - about adult children of alcoholics, and the play "Higher Education" - about alcohol use on college campuses. She performed in a one woman play about land conservation called "Planting in the Dust " that toured throughout the rural midwest. Laura was also the Co-founder of Cornerstone Productions LLC. She co-wrote and performed "Questions" & "Questions II" - one woman shows for middle school students and "The Next Level," - a play celebrating the history of women in sports. She created Supporting Players© Trainings and for 15 years she and her husband Paul trained young students how to create scenes about various topics using improv. At one point over 100 acting troupes had been trained and were actively performing throughout the midwest. They also conducted Empower Players© Trainings - creating skits for new college student orientation. After moving back to Madison, she became very involved with the Wisconsin Ovarian Cancer Alliance (WOCA) as an Ambassador for the Madison area. She emceed the first "WOCA Whisper Walk and 5K Run" and the first "Globe-athon Walk to End Women's Cancers" both in the Madison area. She wrote and performed in a one woman show about her ovarian cancer journey called "Please Send Hats." It was performed through the midwest and for the "WOCA Survivors Brunch" in Milwaukee and the "Sparkle of Hope Benefit for Gynecologic Cancer" in Madison. Laura was also active as a Director and Presenter for "Survivors Teaching Students: Saving Women's Lives®" a program that has ovarian cancer survivors recount their journeys and the warning signs to 3rd year medical students. Laura affected countless people with her endless love, her boundless energy, her indomitable spirit and her incredible strength. She was truly a gift to us all. In addition to her husband Paul, she is survived by her mother Patricia; her sisters, Mary (Tom) Riddle, Margaret (Andrew) Cybularz, Deborah (Douglas) Clark-Clements, JoEllen (Steven) Malara, Pamela Crowe, Julie (Robert) Wall, Karyn (Carlos) Chacon, Joan (Michael) Snedeker; and her brother, Michael (Candi) Clark. Laura was preceded in death by her father, Robert Clark and her brother, Joseph Clark; Memorial services will be held at GUNDERSON OREGON FUNERAL AND CREMATION CARE, 1150 Park St, Oregon, at 11:00 am on Tuesday December 6, 2016, with Rev. Rebecca Ninke presiding. Visitation will be held at Gunderson Oregon Funeral Home from 5:00 pm until 8:00 pm on Monday, December 5, 2016, and also at the funeral home from 9:30 am until the time of the service on Tuesday. In lieu of flowers the family suggests memorials may be made to Agrace Hospice & Palliative Care or the Wisconsin Ovarian Cancer Alliance.