James Lane Hansmann

SPRINGFIELD - James Lane Hansmann, 62, of Springfield, MA died Sunday, June 11, 2017 doing what he loved, jumping out of a perfectly good airplane. Jim was born in Niskayuna, NY and raised in Westfield and West Springfield. He leaves behind his parents, James Hansmann of Longmeadow and Nancy (Harris) Steffens of West Springfield, daughter Karen Hansmann and her partner Jeff Bourque of Chicopee, daughter Joanne Charland and two grandsons, Rudy and Vinnie Charland, of Chicopee, son Nicholas and daughter Isabel with their mother Marian Canas of East Longmeadow, brothers David, Robert, and Scott Hansmann and his German shepherds Onyx and Molly. He leaves behind the great love of his life, Martha von Mering, Ph.D., of Springfield, whom he was planning to wed in April 2018 and his "Best Man" Jillian Mercadante. He also leaves behind many devastated bartenders at On the Border and baristas at Starbucks, and a void at Genden Auto Parts, where he spent so much time. Jim owned and operated a mechanical engineering firm, Cortazar, LTD, but his passion was playing cops as a Detective Lieutenant with the Leyden Police Department, and Pelham PD before that. He had previously worked for the International Committee of the Red Cross in Yemen, Kenya, and Rwanda. Jim was a skydiving devotee, amassing nearly 5000 jumps before his final fall. He had a wicked sense of humor that he got away with because he was such a caring person who would help anyone in need, and would keep you laughing when you felt you should be crying. He lived life to the fullest and will be missed by so many. Services will be held at New England Funeral and Cremation Center, LLC, 25 Mill St., Springfield, MA on Saturday, June 24, 2017 from 10 AM to 12:00 PM, with speaking program to start at 11:15 AM. The family invites friends to join them for a luncheon immediately following and, weather-permitting, a cremated remains dive by parachute at Ellington Airport following the luncheon. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations can be made to: Connecticut Parachutist Inc., 360 Somers Road, Ellington, CT 06029. For further information visit www.nefcc.net

James Lane Hansmann

November 28, 1954 - June 11, 2017