Signe Brown Hanson

Signe Brown Hanson born on October 17, 1945, in Washington DC, died on February 15, 2026, in Easton, Maryland. She was the daughter of Haldore and Bernice Hanson. Signe grew up in Arcola, Virginia attending schools in Loudoun County, Virginia. She moved with her family to Burma in 1957 and then on to Iran, West Pakistan, Nigeria, and Mexico. Her father worked in economic development in Third World countries, principally with the Ford Foundation. Signe attended school in Rangoon, Burma and then boarding school at La Chatelaine, St. Blaise, Switzerland. She earned her bachelor’s from Grinnell College in Grinnell, Iowa, and a master’s in public administration from the Maxwell School, Syracuse University. As part of her graduate work, she did research in Dacca, East Pakistan. Following graduation, Signe worked in public administration in the Governor’s office in both Madison, Wisconsin and Trenton, New Jersey. Deciding she needed a complete career U-turn, Signe gained her Commercial Driver’s License and worked as a truck driver at the Port Elizabeth docks ferrying containers between ships and warehouses. Needless to say, she was one of the very few woman drivers at the New York docks. In one final career turn, Signe went back to school at Delaware Valley University earning a degree in Horticulture and worked for nearly ten years as a consultant to landscape companies on the Eastern and Western shores of Maryland. She lived in Denton before retiring to Easton. In 2021 Signe was diagnosed with PSP, a rare degenerative brain disease with no known cure. In the last years of her life she lived at Heartfields Assisted Living Community and then Candlelight Cove, both in Easton Maryland. Signe was an independent woman with strong liberal beliefs. Outside of work she became an accomplished potter, selling in galleries on the Eastern Shore. In retirement she taught English to Hispanic workers and was appointed an Ad Litem helping minors in legal proceedings. Although she never married, she was a loving person with a close-knit group of lifelong friends. She was predeceased by her parents, Hal and Berni Hanson. She is survived by her brother Eric, of Greensboro, Vermont. Signe was a strong financial supporter of clean water in Africa. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Signe’s name to Lifetime Wells International which started in Denton, Maryland and which drills water wells in Ghana and Tanzania.

Signe Brown Hanson

October 17, 1945 - February 15, 2026