Francis Dale Hagen Sr.

On Sunday, September 26, 2021, Francis Dale Hagen Sr., loving husband and father of five children, passed away at the age of 88 surrounded by his family.  Fran was born on December 16, 1932 in Aberdeen, SD to August and Veronica Hagen.  He received his civil engineering degree from Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in 1955.  While at Marquette, he met the love of his life Darleen Marie Day.  On November 26, 1955, Fran and Darleen were married, and as a gift from Uncle Sam, Fran was drafted into the Army and reported for duty just days after their wedding.

After serving in the Army in Anchorage, Alaska from 1955 to 1957, Fran and Darleen began raising their growing family in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, before moving to Minnesota and eventually settling down in Plymouth.  Fran’s civil engineering career spanned over 5 decades.  In 1972, he started his own consulting firm Westwood Planning & Engineering, which is now known as Westwood and has 17 offices in 11 states and employs over 800 people.  After a brief retirement, Fran went back to work for the City of Robbinsdale, Minnesota as their City Engineer, Public Works Director, and eventually their City Manager.  When he retired for good, in 1996, Fran kept busy volunteering at St. Joseph Catholic Church in New Hope, serving on the Board of Directors of the St. Therese Foundation, and building his dream cabin up north from the ground up.

Over the years, Fran had many hobbies to keep him busy. With his GI Bill, he took electronic classes and learned to build his family’s console color TV and a first-generation computer.  While his children were young, Fran was a scout leader for Troop 567 in Plymouth for almost 20 years.  When his five children graduated from college and bought their own homes, Fran was there to help with just about any remodeling project, large or small.  With the birth of his first grandchild in the 1980s, Fran earned what would arguably become his favorite title:  Papa.  Fran cherished being Papa to his 12 grandchildren and 3 great-grandchildren.

Fran was preceded in death by his father, August, his mother Veronica, and sisters Doris (John) Smith, Gerry (Francis) Burns, Rose Marie (John) Fridgen, and brother-in-law George Schoch.  He is survived by his loving wife Darleen; his children, Fran (Terri), Jeff (Kathy), Janet (Craig Hamilton), Jim, and John (Amy); grandchildren, Kaity (Jarrod Reece), Dan (Ali), Madison (Raffaele Patrizi), Alec, Danielle, Frankie, Michelle, AJ, Nicole (Bryan Kowalkowski), Emily, Matthew, and Abby; great-grandchildren, Camille, Carl Francis, and Haley; and his sister Bonnie Schoch.

A Celebration of Fran’s life will be held on Sunday, October 10, 2021 from 4 - 7 p.m., at the Gearty-Delmore Funeral Chapel, 15800 37th Ave N, Plymouth, MN.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Monday, October 11, 2021 at 11 a.m., with visitation one hour prior, at the St. Joseph Catholic Church, 8701 36th Ave N, New Hope, MN.  Interment at Gethsemane Cemetery, New Hope, MN.

Memorial donations in memory of Fran may be made to the St. Therese Foundation, St. Louis Park, MN, or St. Therese of Oxbow Lake Long-Term Care, Brooklyn Park, MN.  Mask are requested.