David James "Dave" Anderson

1942 - 2016

David "Dave" James Anderson October 12, 1942 - November 27, 2016 Dave passed away on November 27, 2016 after a long battle with Alzheimer's disease. He is remembered for his beautiful smile, his gentle and caring spirit, and his unwavering belief in the goodness and potential of others. He is survived by his wife of 53 years, Chris; his brothers Paul (wife Dot) and Bruce, sister Brenda, Chris' siblings and spouses (Bill (Mary), Mary (Gary), Leo (Karen), and Eileen (Larry)), sister-in-law Liz, and many nieces, nephews, and cousins. He is predeceased by his parents, Lawrence and Josephine Anderson. Dave moved about 20 times during his childhood as his father, Larry, was a flight instructor in Arizona and California. Moving so often, Dave developed great interpersonal skills and quickly established himself as a leader and friend wherever he went. He was student body president in middle and high school. Always active, football, water polo, shot put and wrestling were his high school sports. With Key Club he contributed to many community projects. Dave and Chris met in middle school and maintained a long-distance relationship through high school. During high school and early college he worked for Chris' father as a choker setter and a sanitation truck driver during the summers and lived with Chris' family. The family lore is that Chris' Dad wanted Dave to hang around permanently! Dave was a "Can Do" guy. He worked his way through college at Fresno State and San Francisco State with jobs as a campus fireman, school bus driver, lifeguard, and credit reference checker. He earned a Bachelor's Degree in Business Administration and later, a Teaching Certificate from UC Berkeley. After graduation, he served as a lieutenant in the National Guard. His first full time job was as a salesman for Proctor and Gamble and he excelled but wanted to do more meaningful work so switched to teaching. Dave's positive attitude, optimism, persistence, and warm personality marked everything he did. During 32 years of teaching, he worked primarily with the Marin County Office of Education's Regional Occupation Program and the Marin Employment Connection. He was the first teacher in the innovative Simulated Office training center and later focused on teaching computer applications. His patience and unwavering support helped many people retrain for new careers and find self-confidence. For many years he was a trainer, facilitator, and builder of adventure ropes courses, beginning at Ft. Miley in San Francisco. He spearheaded fundraising to build a course in the Soviet Union securing Finn Air to donate transport for over a ton of building materials and equipment to Moscow. With four colleagues they constructed the course in the Caucasus Mountains with a goal of fostering Soviet/American relations with young people. This adventure ended with a scary run-in with the KGB! He could often be found helping Chris with adventures in the SWAS program at Drake High. Here he enjoyed a mentoring role with young people while sharing his love of the outdoors. After retirement Dave volunteered as a nature guide with Wildcare, introducing school children to China Camp's flora and fauna. For over 14 years, Dave and Chris have supported a small village school in Tanzania. Dave masterfully got donations. First, sports equipment; later funds to build two classrooms, student and teacher desks. This work contributed to the village being able to provide secondary education which would otherwise be unattainable by most of the young people. Avid travelers, Dave kept a map of the world and marked "over 70 countries" they visited. Always a new place, new culture, new friends. He tried all the foods"why not!" Dave loved adventure--- hiking, backpacking, mountaineering (Denali, Mt. Blanc, Kenya, Tanzania, Nepal, Peru), snorkeling and scuba. Journeys by canoe in the Arctic, camel in Morocco, dugout in Bolivia, bicycle in Viet Nam. He was game for everything. With Chris he hiked the John Muir Trail from Yosemite to Whitney, Inca trails in Peru and Bolivia, and trekked in Nepal. He was often found hiking Mt. Tam and Pt. Reyes. He cherished the time he spent with his father who taught him how to fly. Dave also had an eclectic interest in the arts. He sang with the Winifred Baker Chorale, listened to all music genres (depending on mood), and relaxed with his own artwork dabbling. He and Chris were long time regulars at the Monterey Jazz Festival, San Francisco Symphony, and ACT. And wine! Dave made wine with friends, taught wine appreciation classes, and opened a small import, wholesale, retail wine business. One summer was spent in a VW Vanagon traveling in Europe finding wines to import. The business ended when he and Chris realized they had to take separate vacations to keep the shop open limiting their travels. A celebration of life will be held on January 6, 2017 from 1-4 pm at The Key Room (Homeward Bound), 1385 Hamilton Parkway, Novato. Friends, colleagues and family are invited. In lieu of flowers, a donation to the Alzheimer's Association (http://www.alz.org/norcal/) is preferred.