Obituary of James R Anderson

James R. Anderson Jr.

James (Jim) R. Anderson, Jr. 65, of Battle Ground passed away Thursday, September 21, 2017, at Legacy Health Salmon Creek Medical Center.  He was born in Dothan, Alabama, son to the late James and M. Tera (Mike) Anderson (nee Smith).

Jim was a graduate of Lathrop High School and attended the University of Alaska-Fairbanks.  Jim had many hobbies and interests.  Music and Astronomy were notably a large part of his life.  As a youth, he excelled at ballet and tap, and later expanded his repertoire to martial arts and downhill skiing.  He was a Life Guard and loved to swim.  Jim was very athletic and active, able to do back flips and walk on his hands into his sixties. He was also a poet and writer.

He loved his family and had many adventures with them over the years, including traveling, camping, and hiking. In his quiet moments Jim read and he loved learning new words every day.  Jim also painted Alaskan scenes in oil.

Jim studied the Buddhist faith and lived his life according to his beliefs.  He loved all creatures and rescued many, including spiders. In his last days, he said he wanted to come back as a leaf.

He was a self-taught astronomer and loved showing people the rings of Saturn, Mars, craters on the Moon, and other wonders of the universe.  He spent considerable time looking up at the night sky wherever he traveled.  He was a member of the Battle Ground Astronomy Club.  Jim loved optical and lasers, including studying and creating holograms.

Jim was a self-taught musician and actually bought his first guitar, which had a plant in it, at a yard sale.  Jim tossed the plant, put on strings and proceeded to learn by listening to others play.  He became proficient on guitar, bass guitar, electric guitar, piano, and drums.  Jim’s career and first-love was music and he performed at Fairbanks, clubs, saloons, various weddings and other celebrations, as well as across the state of Alaska at many remote villages.  Jim and his equipment were often flown into a remote site where he listened to wolves howling nearby while waiting to be picked up by dog sled and taken to a village.  In summer, his gear would be loaded on boats and he would travel up river to the villages.  On many occasions, he slept on cabin floors or on the bank of a river.

After retiring Jim and his wife, Teresa, drove from Alaska to Washington state, then to the East coast and back again, with two cats and had many adventures along the way.  Jim settled in Battle Ground and played at local pubs for a few years.  He also donated many hours playing music for the seniors and charity events.  Jim played all kinds of music, including rock and roll, country western, jazz, Polynesian, and what he called cocktail music.

Jim was also a portrait photographer, did maintenance for the North Star Borough School district, and was a small gauge train engineer for Alaska Land (now called Pioneer Park) in Fairbanks, Alaska.  Jim also worked as a laborer helping build the Alaska Pipeline.  He loved hiking the mountains above Cold Foot Camp and communing with nature after his shift.  Jim had many bear stories from those years and loved to share them with everyone he met.  He also had a dry sense of humor and loved to joke.

Jim is survived by his wife, Teresa Anderson of Battle Ground, WA; his son, Kimo Hollinrake and wife Eva of Germany; and four grandchildren: Lea and Amelie of Germany, and Keoni and Aaliyah with their mother Janette of Fayetteville, NC.  He is also survived by his sister, Lougenia Anderson and husband Jay Cushman of Portland, OR; his sister, Beverly Anderson and husband Terry Byrd of Durango, CO; his niece, Dr. Tera Cushman and husband James Ellis of Portland, OR; his niece, Carrie Cushman and fiancé Michael Penkman or Olympia, WA; and by his nephew, Taylor Byrd of Portland, OR.

Also surviving are many sisters-in-law, brothers-in-law, cousins, nieces and nephews.

Jim touched a lot of lives and put a smile on a lot of faces.  His adventurous and loving spirit will be missed by many people. 

A private service will be held at a later date