Frederick Robert Anderson

Fred Anderson, 70, died October 17, 2018, at the MatSu Regional Hospital in Palmer, AK. Frederick Robert Anderson was born April 28, 1948, in Monroe County, MI, to Robert W. and Gladys (Barry) Anderson. He grew up in Carleton, MI, graduating from Airport H.S. in Carleton in 1966. He attended Alma College and received his degree in education in 1970. He taught for one year in Michigan. After receiving his pilots license, he decided to follow a different path and went to work as a flight instructor. In 1974 he moved to South Naknek, AK, and took a job flying for the local air taxi. For many years he flew South Naknek students across the Naknek River to attend school in Naknek and flew them home at the end of each school day. Beginning in the 1980s he began working for Kings Flying Service and spent the remainder of his flying career with Kings. Fred married Laura Woods in 1980 and adopted her four daughters. The marriage didnt last and Fred raised the four girls as a single dad. There was once talk of naming him as "mother of the year" in Naknek. All four daughters were with him in Palmer when he left this life. Fred was not only a skilled pilot but was also an expert aircraft mechanic. He rebuilt and re-certified a number of airplanes and even built two home-built aircraft from scratch. Around 1990 he went to work for North Pacific Processors. He continued to fly in the summers, and took care of the Pederson Point processing plant in the winter. After he retired from commercial flying, he worked year round at the cannery. He spent more than 25 years with the company. He retired to Palmer in 2016. Fred is survived by his daughters Sheri Thomas, Dawn Wassillie, Jeanine Wallace and Allison Anderson and their families and by his older siblings, sister Kathy Chinavare and brother Jim Anderson and their families. At the time of his death Fred had 14 grandchildren and 2 great-grandchildren. A celebration of life is tentatively planned for mid-November in Palmer. Freds ashes will be buried in the Naknek Cemetery and a Naknek memorial celebration will be held later this coming spring. Condolences may be online posted at the Cremation Society of Alaska at www.alaskacremation.com. Those wishing to make memorial donations in Freds honor are urged to consider either the Nicholas Monsen Jr. Memorial Scholarship Fund, P.O. Box 103, Naknek, AK, 99633 or the NN Cannery History Project at NNcanneryproject.com.