Charles Frederick “Chuck” Hamsa was born July 17, 1938, in Omaha, Nebraska, to William R. Hamsa, Sr. and Anna Marie Brodegaard Hamsa. He married his wife, Sara, in 1966. They had one son. Hamsa attended the University of Omaha until he joined the U.S. Navy. He received his B.S. in History in 1964. He received an M.S. in Latin American History from the University of Nebraska in January 1969, and an M.S. in Library Science from Kansas State Teachers College in August 1969. Hamsa joined the faculty of Edith Garland Dupré Library at the University of Southwestern Louisiana (now the University of Louisiana at Lafayette) in the Fall of 1969 as Acquisitions Librarian. He later worked in the Reference Department until his retirement in 1999. He co-authored several bibliographies with Dr. Norman Heard. Charles Hamsa passed away November 28, 2016.

Hamsa’s interests were many and varied. He was active in Acadian Village, Grace Presbyterian Church, Rotary Club and the Masons. His hobbies included blacksmithing, living history, portraying Papa Noel at Christmastime, and collecting political memorabilia