Karlan Hudson Wanersdorfer Hanley

Published 3:02 pm Friday, March 22, 2019

Karlan Hudson Wanersdorfer Hanley, 76, formerly of Orange and Tomball, TX, passed away on March 14, 2019 from Alzheimer’s.  A Memorial Service will be held at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday, March 30 at St. John Lutheran Church in Cypress, TX.

Karlan was born New Roads, Louisiana.  She was Valedictorian of Innis High School’s class of 1960.  Always, want to be a nurse, she earned her RN from Mather School of Nursing in New Orleans in 1963.

A longtime resident of Orange, Tx and Tomball, TX, Karlan was a home health care nurse, and served as school nurse at North Junior High and West Orange-Stark High School East Campus for 5 years.  Karlan was also the first president of the local March of Dimes chapter and implemented the BabyBuddy program, which provided prenatal and parenting education for indigent women.  She was also a 26-year volunteer at the American Red Cross in Orange, teaching a variety of courses on parenting, nutrition, HIV/AIDS, babysitting certification and home nursing, as well as working several field assignments in Disaster Health Services.  She had the joy of being a nurse at Camp Otanya for several summers.

After moving to Tomball, TX, she served as a hospice nurse, and substitute nurse at Sheltering Arms Adult Day Center.

Karlan’s true loves and greatest pride were her grandchildren, Nicholas and Allison Pellegrino.  She made a point to attend every school program, concert, sporting event, birthday party, and made every birthday cake until 2016.

Karlan is survived by her daughter and son-in-law, Linda and Greg Pellegrino of Cypress, TX; grandchildren, Nicholas and Allison Pellegrino; brothers and sisters-in-law, Joe and Liz Wanersdorfer of Colorado Spring, CO and Allen and Kathy Wanersdorfer of Mansura, LA; bonus children, Beth and Buddy Tiedt of Ft. Myers, FL, Barbara and Sam Gallier of Beaumont, TX and Robert Hanley and Jeff Kohlenberg of League City, TX; former husband John Hanley, Sr. of Sugar Land; and numerous nieces, nephews and bonus grandkids.