Eugene M. “Chris” Christensen, well-known in Lafayette and in oil and gas circles in Louisiana and Texas, died Wednesday, October 28 at the home of his daughter, Mylia, and her husband in West Linn, Oregon, after a visit there of several months.

Funeral services will be held at a Mass of Christian Burial at the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist at 1:00 PM on Thursday, November 5, 2009. Burial will follow in St. John Cemetery. The family will receive visitors at Martin & Castille Funeral Home only the evening before services: on Wednesday, November 4, 2009 from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

Mr. Christensen was born on June 7, 1926 in Wessington Springs, South Dakota. He was the fourth of five children born to Andreas and Inger Riis Christensen, originally of Nyköbing, Denmark. He received his undergraduate degree from Yankton College in South Dakota and a Master’s degree from the University of Wisconsin at Madison. Upon graduation from Wisconsin, he was selected as one of 25 interns to the U. S. State Department under Secretary of State Dean Acheson in the Truman administration.

In Lafayette, Mr. Christensen began his career in the oil and gas industry as a scout for Tenneco Oil Company. He worked as a landman for Tenneco in Denver, Colorado and Wichita Falls, Texas, before returning to Lafayette as their District Landman. Over the years he was a dedicated duck hunter and a longtime member of Ducks Unlimited. He was an avid photographer with an uncanny ability to capture special moments and his photographs are held by many among their favorites. He is survived by his wife, Julie; two daughters: Julienne Christensen and her husband Gregory Smith of San Francisco; Mylia Christensen and her husband Doug Crawford of West Linn, Oregon; and one son, Riis Martin Christensen of Dallas, Texas; his seven grandchildren: Jessica, Colin and Cameron Wray; Erica, Alexander and Aren Christensen, and Matthew Smith. He is survived by his sister, Edna Christensen Hawley of Wessington Springs, South Dakota, and a brother, Dr. Robert Christensen and his wife, Linda, of Sioux Falls, South Dakota. He is also survived by a brother-in-law Paul Sidney Martin, Sr., and his wife, Mary Lou, of Lafayette. He leaves a host of nieces and nephews in South Dakota who held “Uncle Gene” with great affection.

Memorials in his name to the Choir of the Cathedral would be a fitting tribute. Memorials may be sent to Mr. Tom Niel, Director of Music, Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist, P.O. Drawer V, Lafayette, LA. 70502.

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