February 13th Eric celebrates another birthday. Another trip around the sun. As we age, those trips seem to take less time but are more worthy of recognition and celebration. Eric has impacted so many lives and I hope that you all will join me in wishing him the happiest of birthdays. If you see him on the ski trails or around Ironwood, please give him a warm birthday wish. Maybe send him a card to remind him that he is remembered and loved.
Eric and I were born two years apart and so were very close growing up in Ironwood. We shared a bedroom in the family farmhouse until I left to attend Michigan Tech. I have such great memories of good times!
As life separated us and we began our journeys to different engineering careers, time and space made it more difficult to stay in touch on a regular basis. We lived thousands of miles apart and were separated by five time zones. We saw each other about once a year and would share three or four phone calls. But distance never diminished the unspoken love and bonds we shared. Loving brothers always!
Our father and mother instilled in us the value of family commitment. It was an Anderson priority and will always be so. As our lives moved in different directions, our contacts became more infrequent. Around 2015 we committed to more frequent communication. What a blessing that decision has been! We are very alike with our approach to engineering but remain uniquely different as individuals. We recognize our differences as opportunities to rely upon each other’s strengths and differing perspectives. We share victories, failures, problems, and solutions regularly. Eric is a rock that I depend upon and is always available whenever I need him.
In 2022 our dad passed and we became even closer. Mom visits my family in Texas each year. I smile when I think of the times Mom and I would stop in mid-conversation as I interrupted to take a phone call from Eric. The glow of love and happiness on her face as she realized her boy’s relationship was strong and lasting is something I will always treasure. Loving that her sons were “getting along.”
After Eric’s heart attack in 2018, he told me about he and Angela’s wish to donate their life’s work to a non-profit foundation, now known as the Anderson Bluffs & River Trails Foundation. I immediately offered to help and became the first Foundation volunteer. I remain intricately involved and treasure the opportunity to be closely involved with my brother’s life. I am so proud of Eric’s and Angela’s gift of a lifetime!
Happy birthday brother! I enjoy each day as your brother and love you!
Scott Anderson
