After Nearly Four Decades of Service, Operations Director Linda Hanson Retires From Grandma’s Marathon
Retires as One of the Longest-Tenured Employees in Organization History
Zach Schneider
(DULUTH, MINN.) — Longtime Grandma’s Marathon Finance & Operations Director Linda Hanson has retired after nearly four decades with the organization, it was officially announced today.
Hanson, who was raised in West Duluth and graduated from Duluth Denfeld High School, started with Grandma’s Marathon in 1987 and will retire as one of the longest-tenured employees in the organization’s history.
“Everything I’ve done at Grandma’s Marathon was super fun,” Hanson said. “They say, ‘If you love your job, you’ll never work a day in your life,’ and they’re right. I was extremely fortunate to have one of the absolute best jobs on the planet, and it’s truly been an honor to be part of this organization.”
In addition to handling the organization’s finances and a multi-million-dollar annual budget, Hanson also played an instrumental role in the event’s race operations as well as the annual spaghetti dinner and race weekend entertainment.
“Linda has been invaluable over the years to Grandma’s Marathon, and we’re certainly going to miss her,” Executive Director Shane Bauer said. “The institutional knowledge and experience she has with our race is second to none, and her work behind the scenes is one of the big reasons our race has become what it is today.”
One of Hanson’s favorite parts of working for Grandma’s Marathon has been the chance to travel the country as an ambassador for not only the race, but the community as well. In fact, she routinely participated in the events she traveled to as part of the event’s promotion.
“As much as I loved my job, and I truly did,” she said, “I love not working more. My husband and I are so excited to do what we want, when we want. Life is good and about to get better.”
Hanson has been married nearly 35 years and is the proud mother of two sons and has two grandsons, with whom she’s excited to spend a lot more time.
For any questions or interview requests, please contact Marketing & Public Relations Director Zach Schneider via phone at (218) 343-9874 or via email at [email protected].
