Dr. John Stanley Anderson passed away peacefully in his sleep, Tuesday, January 20, 2015. He had just marked his 91th birthday.
John Stanley Anderson was born January 17, 1924 in McPherson, Kansas, the oldest of two sons born to J. Edwin and Bertha L. Anderson.
Stan (his middle name was used until he entered the military) spent his entire childhood and early youth in Salina, Kansas. He graduated from Salina High School in 1941. His extra-curricular activities included football, chorus, and debate.
He attended Bethany College, Lindsborg, Kansas, as a pre-med student from 1941 to 1943. World War II was in progress and he enlisted in the Army. Basic training was at Camp Barkley, Abilene, Texas. Instead of going to the front, he was sent to Camp Maxey, Paris, Texas. The purpose was to determine what aptitude and skills these raw recruits had, and to sort them out for further education and testing. Two weeks of evaluations were wasted. The Army needed engineers, and every soldier was sent to engineering school. John was sent to the College of the City of New York. One day there, everyone was given a written medical aptitude test. On the basis of this one test, he was taken out of engineering and sent to New York University School of Medicine. He was discharged from the Army in 1946 having spent the entire period as a Private, going to school.
John met the love of his life, Ruth L. Olson, at Gustavus Adolphus Lutheran Church, New York City. They both sang in the church choir there.
John graduated from NYU Medical School and married Ruth the following day, June 10, 1948. He next went to Akron, Ohio, to take a year internship at City Hospital. Ruth supplemented the meager income by working as a secretary at Goodyear Tire and Rubber. It was during this time that Congress passed the ‘Doctor Draft Act.’ Anyone who became a physician while in uniform was required to ‘pay’ for their education with further military service. John, having tried the Army, chose this time to be in the Navy. As it turned out, the Navy sent him to the Air Force. The Air Force had just been created and was short of medical officers. John was sent to Randolph Field, San Antonio, Texas to Flight Surgeon School. His next, and only, assignment in the Air Force was at Scott Air Force Base, Belleville, Illinois. After completing his required length of service, he was discharged.
He returned to Akron, Ohio for a pediatric residency at Children’s Hospital. After one year, John discovered that he didn’t want to become a pediatrician. As he put it, in some degree of desperation, he thought he would be more comfortable in Public Health. He was also interested in tropical medicine and had some vague notion of becoming a medical missionary. He went to Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, New Orleans, Louisiana and received a Master’s Degree in 1951. He returned to Kansas, working as a public health resident at Wichita-Sedgwick County Health Department.
This lasted only nine months. The Navy, in its great wisdom, reviewed records and discovered that John lacked six months of his required military duty. He received orders to report to Bainbridge, Maryland. This was an enlistment center. John guessed that he would be doing physical examinations, when he was trained for epidemiology and public health. He wrote to the Bureau of Medicine, USN, explaining the situation. His orders to Bainbridge were cancelled. He was to report to Yokosuka, Japan and be the Preventive Medical Officer for the Commander of Naval Forces in the Far East. John visited most of the Navy and Marine Corps facilities in Japan and Korea. He was part of a small naval force that assisted the French in transporting Vietnamese civilians who wished to move from North to South Vietnam. This was his last tour of duty, but he continued in the inactive Naval Reserves and retired with the rank of Commander.
John was briefly the Assistant Health Officer for the Wichita-Sedgwick County Health Department before he accepted the position of Director of the Pueblo City-County Health Department, Colorado, from 1954 to 1961. At that time, he accepted the position of Director of the Montana State Health Department, Helena, Montana, where he remained until he retired in 1983, serving Governors Nutter, Babcock, Anderson and Judge.
He was President of the Colorado and Montana Public Health Associations; State and Provincial Health Authorities and the Association of State and Territorial Health Officers, and was a member of the governing board of the American Public Health Association. He received the Mary E. Soules Award from the Montana Public Health Association and the McCormick award from the Association of State and Territorial Health Officers, both citing distinguishing service.
After retirement he became a fixture at Carroll College as an auditor. He loved being a student, and he was a dedicated one. In 2000, he had completed 69 semester credits, and he continued his studies well after that date.
John was physically active as long as his body permitted it. He loved to hike, cross-country ski and fish. He was a member of the men’s group that played basketball at the YMCA and 7th Avenue gym at noon, until he turned 55. His team won the ‘Rocking Chair League’ championship in 1978. He and Ruth square danced for many years. He loved to sing and was an active member of Last Chance Barbershoppers and the St John’s Lutheran church choir. He was also a member of the Kiwanis club.
John valued faith, family, and friendship above all else. One of John’s passions was trees. After acquiring 10 acres on Pay Dirt Drive, he not only built a house but surrounded the property in hundreds of trees that were individually planted, watered, and tended. They matured to leave a lasting legacy of his efforts. It would be honoring to John to remember him by planting a tree this spring.
He is survived by his wife Ruth; four children, Linnea Blair, Portsmouth, NH, John K. Anderson, Missoula, MT, Linda (Kerry) Swindler, Mott ND, and Carol (K. Bill) Clark, Missoula, MT; five grandchildren, Erin (Bill) Oberlander, Nathan (Angie) Swindler, Hollie (Lewis) Kuppler, Cairn (Laura) Clark, Seth Clark; and 2++ great grandchildren.
The family would like to thank all the people who helped Dad in his final stage of life: Amanda, Marie, Gina; and also the staff at Touchmark for their care the last several months. Thank you to Mayor Steve and wife Christie, and First Lady Sheryl for all of your help and love.
Please join us at the service to honor his life on Saturday, January 31 at 1pm at St. John’s Lutheran Church, Helena, MT. A reception will follow the service at the church. Interment of cremains will be for family at Fort Harrison, Friday, January 30.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to St. John’s Lutheran Church Memorial Fund, 1000 Helena Ave, Helena, MT; or Montana Talking Books Library, 1515 E 6th Ave, Helena, MT.
Service Schedule
Burial with Military Honors
1:00 p.m.
Friday January 30, 2015
Montana State Veterans Cemetery
Heroes Rd.
Ft. Harrison, Montana 59636
Memorial Service
1:00 p.m.
Saturday January 31, 2015
St. John's Lutheran Church
1000 Helena Ave.
Helena, Montana 59601
Reception
After the service
Saturday January 31, 2015
St. John's Lutheran Church
1000 Helena Ave.
Helena, Montana 59601
Service Schedule
Burial with Military Honors
1:00 p.m.
Friday January 30, 2015
Montana State Veterans Cemetery
Heroes Rd.
Ft. Harrison, Montana 59636
Memorial Service
1:00 p.m.
Saturday January 31, 2015
St. John's Lutheran Church
1000 Helena Ave.
Helena, Montana 59601
Reception
After the service
Saturday January 31, 2015
St. John's Lutheran Church
1000 Helena Ave.
Helena, Montana 59601
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Julie Huntington says
What a wonderful obituary. I worked with Maxine Homer at what was then the Department of Health and Environmental Sciences. Dr. Anderson was the director–and I was astonished that he would invite me, a 25-year-old newbie, to join him at coffee breaks. He was the nicest man, and we had the most enjoyable visits. He was a class act.
Deb Kralicek says
We met John square dancing when we were just a very young couple. When moving back to Montana John and Ruth were so generous in making sure we had fresh vegetables in our house for our daughters. I will always remember his kindness and his laugh. Blessings and prayers.
Don Pratt says
I am so sorry to hear of the passing of Doc. I so enjoyed working with him and playing ball at the Y. I am sorry I will be out of town for his funeral but my thoughts and prayers are with you all. If there is any thing I can do please call on me.