Obituary of William Charles Anderson

William Charles Anderson 1942-2017 Bill Anderson was born to a Salvation Army family in Chicago on April 28, 1942. He was the only boy in a family with four sisters, Vera, Fran, Marilyn, and Judy. His father, Frank Anderson, died when he was five years old. The Salvation Army was an important part of the Anderson family life in Chicago both before and after his death. His mother Edna and sister Marilyn have also passed on. As a young man, he struggled with his anger towards God at the death of his father. Even as he struggled with his faith, he moved to St. Paul to attend Seminary at Bethel College. There, he met his wife Diane Appel. He left the seminary when, among other things, the college criticized Martin Luther King Jr. at a service after his death. Bill believed in the Civil Rights movement and believed church was meant to uplift everyone. He finished college with a degree in Philosophy. After a few years working in the social services Bill and Diane had a son, Gregory William Anderson, in 1968. His second son, Steven Benjamin Anderson, was born three years later in 1971. Shortly after that, Bill and Diane moved to Granite Falls, Minnesota, where he became the director of Project Turnabout, a drug dependency treatment center. In Granite Falls, Bill was active on the city council as well as the local United Church of Christ Church. He also began to work through his anger and develop a new understanding of his faith. In the mid-80s, the stress of work at Project Turnabout and related health issues caused him to leave and go back to school. He earned a Master of Art in English from South Dakota State University. He went on to Pocatello, Idaho to work on a Doctorate in English. There, he cemented his love of the mountains and got a teaching job, at the age of 50, at Blackhawk Community College in Davenport, Illinois, based on all his business writing experience. When the Andersons had a party, you would be just as likely to talk to a professor as one of the custodians at the college. Bill was welcoming to all and quick to regularly meet the garbage man with a glass of ice water on a hot day. In addition to a long, second career at Blackhawk College, Bill went through a lay person’s course designed to prepare him for the ministry, completing a path he started at Bethel 30 years before. He took on a part time job as minister at a church in Wilton, Iowa. There he gave lectures, performed weddings and funerals, and visited the sick and dying with his wife, Diane, who was also active in the ministry. Shortly after Bill retired from teaching and ministry, Diane died. Bill moved to St. Paul where he was able to spend his last two years near his sons and childhood friend Greg Taylor, going to Davanni’s for pizza or many other restaurants for their regular get-together. Spending time with his family was very rewarding to him and included his great-grandson, Lincoln and his mothers, granddaughter Katie and Natalie and his extended family the Marks, – Jason, Lynette, Jon, Ken, and Logan. Bill was a friend and grandpa to all. Where ever he went, in any state, in any job, he met everyone with a smile, a joke, and acceptance. Bill's service will be at Immanuel Lutheran Church at 3:00 on Saturday, June 17. The address is 104 Snelling Avenue South, St. Paul, MN: https://www.google.com/maps/place/104+Snelling+Ave+S,+St+Paul,+MN+55105/@44.9382919,-93.1686733,17z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x87f62a17c2fe574d:0x64fe56b109e05f89!8m2!3d44.9382919!4d-93.1664846