Anna Vanderpool

Anna Vanderpool passed away the morning of Oct. 22, 2015, following complications of an acute stroke. She was 81 years old. She was born in Sleetmute, Alaska, on April 6, 1934, to Nick and Katherine Mellick. A visitation will be held at Janssen's Evergreen Memorial Chapel, 737 E Street in Anchorage, Alaska, on Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2015, at 10 a.m., with a service at 11 a.m. A celebration of life will be held afterwards, at 4 p.m., at the home of Judith and Larry Peterson, 2534 Brooke Drive in Anchorage. She attended high school at Mt. Edgecumbe, Alaska, from 1948 -1952. Her senior year, she was crowned queen of her senior prom. In the 1957, she married Lewis "Buster" Vanderpool. The newly married young couple made Aniak, Alaska, their home. They operated their business Vanderpool Air Taxi and raised their family in this small community on the Kuskokwim River. The flying business, in the early years, was operated by the two of them: Buster flew and Anna scheduled charters and operated the old "HF radio." In 2005, Anna moved to Anchorage to be near her children and grandchildren. Her volunteer work included the ANTHC "Distance Learning" Health Aid Program, where she was a role model for the Elder's Care program. Anna is preceded in death by her parents, Nick and Katherine Mellick; sisters, Katherine and Margie; brothers, Nick and Samuel; her husband of many years, Lewis "Buster" Vanderpool; and her children, Cheryl, Vivian and Charles. She is survived by her daughters, Judith Hassinger Peterson with husband Larry, Marjorie Vanderpool and Diane Vanderpool with partner Billy Henry; sons, Lewis "Manny" Vanderpool Jr. and Albert "Bert" Vanderpool; along with many grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Anna was a member of the Russian Orthodox Church and had a strong faith in God. She will be laid to rest in Sleetmute, on the family hill, near her three children, in the summer of 2016. Arrangements are with Janssen's Evergreen Memorial Chapel.