If you would like to share special memories of Hans please email Billydale1@gmail.com, and I will post on this link in a newsletter format on June 11, 2022.
Respectfully,
Billy Dale
Hans Richard Frantz Helland was born to James “Jim” Helland and Patricia “Patty” Ford Helland in Beeville, Texas on September 26, 1951.
HANS HELLAND Obituary (1951 - 2022) - Beeville, TX - San Antonio Express-News (legacy.com)
Hans's memorial service was at 2:00 P.M. Friday, June 3, 2022, at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church in San Antonio.
Hans Helland’s Eulogy by Sarah Helland
Hans was beloved by his family… probably because he loved them so much. He was a kind and generous man, a caregiver, hardworking, humble, and extremely energetic. He loved animals and babies, and they loved him too. Hans was our rock. The person we counted on to be there in every situation, good or bad, big or small, from moving to New York City, to buying a new truck, to going shopping… and shopping and shopping.
Hans was defined by his passions. The things he loved he really loved and he didn’t care what other people thought of them. He loved everything Texas, especially the University of Texas **Hook ‘Em** His favorite color was, of course, burnt orange. And he would have been thrilled if the whole house was dyed that color. He was a proud third-generation Longhorn and especially proud of his time spent on the UT football team playing for Coach Darrell Royal. Patty Helland, Hans’s mom, used to tell the story about the time Darrell Royal came to play golf at the San Antonio Country Club, and when asked where he would like to sit at the dinner, he said “next to Hans Helland’s parents to find out what they did, because if everyone tried as hard as Hans Helland we’d have a National Championship team every year!”
Hans loved working with his father “Jim” in the Texas oil business. He knew every oil and gas formation across the state. If you named a county he could tell you which formation lay under it. He would spend hours poring over logs. He loved driving through the small towns, to peoples’ ranches. He liked the risk and the excitement of working on wells. But mostly he liked the people, the comradery, and the men he worked with.
He was not only interested in oil but also water and was most passionate about conserving and preserving San Antonio’s unique water resources. He spent many years with a group of dedicated friends fighting Applewhite and trying to change the city government‘s thinking about how to protect and manage the aquifer. He was so committed to a sustainable water future for San Antonio, that he successfully ran for election and served on the Edwards Aquifer Water Board. As young children, Will and I were always involved in his weekend endeavors. I remember when he was campaigning playing ding dong ditch while handing out pamphlets when we were just 4 and 6 years old. And we always went to the office with him on Saturdays where we were put to work - highlighting maps for investors, going to the log library… essentially we learned a work ethic by immersion.
He was a kind-hearted generous man who went out of his way to help others. Like his sister Sally, Hans was a caregiver. He cared for many relatives through their final illnesses. He spoon-fed his dad's dinner on the last night of his life, and with Sally helped care for his mother for the last 6 years of hers. He helped raise 2 children and mentored many others. And he did things without the expectation of getting something in return, a lot of which he didn’t tell anybody even us about - giving a friend money to fix a car or helping cover soccer fees for a teammate in need. He was also always willing to give free oil and gas advice - helping somebody fix a lease or making sure a royalty had been paid properly. And he loved to support new small businesses, especially if it were coffee or food-related, like Mila Coffee. Many of you won’t know this, but my favorite movie is Hello Dolly, and like Ephraim in Hello Dolly, Hans believed that “Money, pardon the expression, is like manure. It's not worth a thing unless it's spread around, encouraging young things to grow” and he adhered to that tenet.
Hans was Born a Horn; He was as honest and loyal as anybody I've ever known and was respected by his peers. A generous man who helped many less fortunate than he was without expecting anything in return. I'm so lucky to have had him as a friend from age 6 till the end. He found business success in the oil biz which is possibly the hardest game there is. He married Catherine, a beautiful and smart girl who gave him two precious children. He died too soon but lived a great life.
Hook'em! Jimmy Nixon
Mainly, if you take anything away today, let it be this. Hans was a good man. He was a good listener, and he had lots of practice. He was very patient when he needed to be. He smelled like trident gum and freshly pressed shirts, his hair was always cut, his face was cleanly shaved, and he was always dressed up for work. He knew how to cut a rug… I lived for the times when I got to see him dance at family weddings. He believed in free will and the freedom of expression. He hated injustices of any kind. He was hardworking and appreciated others’ for being the same. He also made friends wherever he went, as you might be able to tell from the attendance today.
And then on October 7, 2021 the tables turned. Since October, those he cared for became his caregivers and it was our honor and privilege. Hans battled a grade IV glioblastoma, an untreatable brain tumor. Due to the effects of the aggressive disease that profoundly affected his memory, he was stripped to his most elemental self. He needed a safe place and chose to be only with his family. We traveled a difficult journey with him for the last 8 months and bear witness to his fortitude in the presence of great suffering. So many of you had us in your thoughts and prayers, and we used it as fuel to get through this most difficult journey. God bless his soul. He is free and forever in our hearts. We look forward to hearing all your happy memories because he will be restored to us in your stories.
Hans obit
Before moving to San Antonio, Hans spent his first years in Beeville, Texas. He graduated from Alamo Heights High School in 1969 where he played Varsity Football. He then graduated from The University of Texas where he majored in Economics and subsequently completed an MBA. He also played on the Texas Longhorn Football Team, following in the footsteps of his great-grandfather, and was proud to play on the 1970 National Championship team coached by Darrell Royal. He was a member of the Kappa Alpha fraternity and found that KA fraternity songs could substitute as lullabies when he had children later in life. Hans was a lifelong Longhorn and loved supporting his alma mater.
Hans made the Texas football team as a “ WALK-ON”. Something that rarely occurred during the DKR era. He understood that goals are good, but without a system of practiced habits in place, goals alone will not lead to success.
Walk-ons carry extra loads that scholarship athletes do not. He understood the load he carried could lead to failure if improperly balanced. From my perspective, it says volumes about the character of Hans that he mastered the system and accomplished his goals. For his years as a Longhorn football player, Hans earned a T-ring and a national championship ring.
Driven by his passion for sports, burnt orange blood, business, friends, faith, and family, he gave back all the blessings he received.
Horns 🤘 and Eyes 👀 Up!
Billy Dale - TLSN Webmaster and a member of the 1967 Longhorn football recruiting class.
After college, Hans worked as a banker in Fort Worth at Fort Worth National Bank, and then in NYC at Marine Midland Bank, where he made lifelong friends. In 1982, he moved back to San Antonio to work in his father’s oil and gas company, Inland Ocean, Inc., eventually becoming president on the death of his father. He met his beautiful wife Catherine Morris through The German Club and they married on August 13, 1983. They were blessed with two children, Sarah and Will. He supported Catherine up and down the sidelines of many soccer games, and then transferred that support to his children for many more years of soccer games. He achieved his goal of watching correctly executed soccer when he became a die-hard Manchester United fan, though oftentimes they didn’t even meet his standards.
Hans was proud of his Norwegian and English heritage, and always dreamed of traveling to meet distant relatives. He and Catherine did venture to England, and Israel in the years prior to his illness with some of his dearest friends. Seeing Jerusalem and the Churchill War Room were highlights. He was a kind and generous man, a caregiver, and was known for being hardworking, humble, and a good dancer. He loved animals and babies, and they loved him too.
Very generous with his time and talents, Hans participated in many clubs. He was a member of The Texas Cavaliers, The San Antonio German Club, The Order of the Alamo, The San Antonio Country Club, The Balcones Energy Library, and The Petroleum Club. He especially loved driving a barge in the San Antonio River Parade with his best friend David Straus, III. He also spent many years following his passion for conserving and protecting the Edwards Aquifer by working on the Edwards Aquifer Water Board with his partner in crime, Carol Patterson, whom he was so proud of.
In his remaining free time Hans volunteered as an usher at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church. Through his 20-year tenure he met many wonderful people - Hans made dear friends wherever he went.
Growing up, Hans enjoyed many skiing vacations at Crested Butte. Always an avid athlete, he and Catherine worked out from the day they first dated to only months before he passed. They ran together, hiked together, aqua jogged together, and over the last years committed to daily spin workouts at Joy Ride Studio, now AMP Studio, at the Pearl. They loved their Joy Ride community and will be forever thankful for the support they received there.
On May 28, we lost a good man, Hans Helland, who walked onto the Texas Longhorn football team in 1969 and stuck with the program his entire 4 years at Texas. Hans was 4 years ahead of me at SA Alamo Heights and encouraged me to play for Texas in 1973, scholarship or not. Hans was a true friend at UT and throughout life, and he will be missed by many.
Jimmy Nixon reminded me of a story I told many years ago about my first meeting in the summer of 1973 with Coach Darrell Royal and Coach Mike Campbell, in Coach Royal’s office. Both coaches spoke highly of Hans and his drive, commitment, and competitiveness as a member of the University of Texas football team from 1969 to 1972. I believed Coach Royal’s words to be true when he looked me straight in the eyes and said, “son, if every player on our team was as committed to football as Hans Helland, we would win the national championship every year.“ Coach Royal meant what he said. Hans, who always had a smile on his face for his many friends, will be remembered and missed, but is now in the arms of God, healthy again and back on the field at Royal-Memorial Stadium.
FORREST M. SMITH III
Director
Kane Russell Coleman Logan PC
Board Certified, Commercial & Residential Real Estate Law,
Texas Board of Legal Specialization
His family is thankful for the support of many people including his doctors, especially Dr. John Galan, his hospice team from River City Hospice including his nurses, Randall and Amanda, his sister Sally Helland, sister-in-law Hannah Morris, brother-in-law James Morris and his wife Sally, and his mother-in-law Lillian Morris.
Hans was preceded in death by his parents, Jim and Patty Helland and his father-in-law, Robert Morris. He is survived by his wife Catherine; his two children Sarah and Will; his three sisters, Sally, Suzanne, and Teresa; and numerous beloved nieces and nephews.
Funeral service will be held Friday, June 3, 2:00pm, at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, 11 St. Luke’s Ln, Alamo Heights, TX, 78209. Please click here to view the livestream of Mr. Helland's service.
In his honor, please go buy a cup of coffee at Mila Coffee on Broadway across from the former Buttercrust Bakery, send a donation to St. Luke’s Episcopal Church or to another charity of your choice.
Please sign the guestbook in his memory. We especially welcome any happy memories you have of him.
