Anne Pedersen Hobson, 60, passed away on April 27, 2026. She was born on June 8, 1965, in Evanston, Illinois, to Janice and Herbert Pedersen, and grew up in Northbrook, Illinois, with her parents and her sister, Holly.

Anne's life was marked by independence, intelligence, creativity, humor, and resilience. After losing her mother when she was just 13 years old, Anne found herself on her own at a young age. She became an emancipated minor and, with determination and courage, began supporting herself. She left high school and took on myriad jobs, including opening her own nail salon business, showing the entrepreneurial spirit that would remain a part of her throughout her life.

In the early 1980s, Anne journeyed to Kansas, where she continued to build a life of learning and creativity. She returned to school and attended McPherson High School, Friends University and Central College of McPherson. In 1994, she graduated cum laude from Wichita State University. Anne was an English major, a writer, and a journalist for The Sunflower at WSU. She had a deep love of words and ideas, and she brought thoughtfulness and originality to her writing. Anne was also a gifted artist. She could draw beautifully and had a natural eye for design, color, and detail.

Anne shared 38 years of marriage with her husband, Stephen Hobson, who survives her. Their life together was filled with the enduring details that make a home: companionship, devotion, love, and of course, coffee. She is also survived by her beloved Pomsky, Nougat, who brought her joy (in return for a steady stream of Greenies), and by the countless neighborhood cats she fed on the porch in blatant, joyous disregard of city ordinance — small creatures who seemed to know they had found a kind and dependable heart.

Anne also leaves behind lifelong friends Connie, Krissi, and Sandy, whose friendships were part of the fabric of her life. Those who knew Anne will remember not only her strength and creativity, but also her wicked sense of humor — sharp, surprising, and unmistakably her own. She had a way of seeing the absurdity in life, of making people laugh, and of bringing wit and originality into even ordinary moments.

Anne had a special place in her heart for her nieces and nephews, and she lovingly remembered their birthdays: Aaron, Aleyah, Alisse, Josef, Nicholas and Zahara. Her care often showed itself in thoughtful gestures, in remembering, in noticing, and in making sure those she loved felt seen.

Among the many organizations Anne volunteered for were Big Brothers Big Sisters, Trees for Life and Sedgwick County Youth Project as well as her own tireless initiative to freely pass out food and clothing to homeless individuals in Wichita's North Riverside neighborhood.

Anne was preceded in death by her mother, Janice; her father, Herbert; and her sister, Holly. Her life was not always easy, but Anne met it with courage, imagination, humor, and a fierce will to make her own way. She leaves behind memories of artistry, intelligence, perseverance, tenderness, laughter, and love — a life shaped by strength, softened by compassion, and remembered with deep, abiding affection.

No services are planned at this time.