Henry W. Slangal

Hank was born in Cicero Illinois to Charles and Rose Slangal. He spent his childhood in Omaha, NE, then moved to Portland OR with his family when he was 15. His introduction to the Pacific Northwest was on that train ride through the Columbia River Gorge; he often spoke of the awe he experienced as he left the prairie and entered the green forested landscape. He graduated from Roosevelt High School. As a young man he attended University of Portland and earned his Bachelors and Masters Degrees in English. During this time he also served as a navigator in the United States Air Force, stateside during the Korean Conflict. In the late Fifties he met the love of his life, June Miller, a South Dakota farm girl. They nurtured a long distance relationship as he taught high school in Blackfoot ID and she lived and worked in the Black Hills of SD. Hank and June married in 1960 and started their family, as well as their legendary odyssey. They began married life in Portland, then moved to Denver, Colorado where daughter Natasha was born in 1961. Natasha was 2 weeks old when they relocated to Detroit, MI. A few years later they moved to Winona, MN to be closer to June’s family. Son Charles was born there in 1963. A few years passed, when they decided to move to Sandy, OR to be closer to Hank’s parents in Portland. A few months later they put down roots in Portland’s Hollywood neighborhood; daughter Anne was born there in 1966. During these years Hank worked in various positions including a bank teller, customs agent, newspaper editor, and college educator. In 1970 the family began another series of moves; in quick succession they tried out Cottage Grove (high school teacher), Redmond, OR (fabric store owner) and settled down again in Milwaukie, OR. By this time Hank had made a career change to being a remodeling contractor, where he could flex his creative muscles. The children grew and left the nest while Hank and June lived in Milwaukie. As soon as the nest was empty, they began another fantastic series of moves going from Milwaukie to Portland’s Brooklyn neighborhood, then to Astoria, Prineville, Oregon City, McMinnville, King City, Scappoose, and finally landing in Mt Angel, where they were residing when he passed away. As one might guess from this series of migrations, Hank was an adventurous and restless soul. He was a voracious reader and learner, and a prolific writer and poet. He became an avid Facebook poster, with postings ranging from bittersweet musings about life and love to serious conversations about our planet and its ability to support reckless human activity. As he grew older the moves became fewer and more difficult; to make up for that lack of excitement, he embarked on a quest for the PERFECT small pickup. This quest involved much buying, trying out for a few months, and then selling of a long line of small trucks. He and June also enjoyed many road trips around the country; they would drive to Georgia to visit their son and to Texas to visit a large contingent of nieces and nephews. They also enjoyed visits to many National Parks. Thankfully Hank was able to drive until the end; he took June for a Sunday afternoon drive in Oregon’s Cascades only a week before his passing. Hank made the world a better place; and he was working on making the world a better place for his grandchildren and their grandchildren. He was dearly loved and will be greatly missed by family and friends. A graveside service will be held at Noon on Friday July 08, 2016 in Willamette National Cemetery.