Anderson clan holds family reunion

By Joan Janzen

Gary and Dorothy Anderson were among the eighty family members who gathered together for a family reunion in Kindersley on the Thanksgiving long weekend. The Anderson clan made a striking appearance as they gathered on the steps of the Legion Hall for a family photo. Gary and Dorothy, their children, spouses and grandchildren were all wearing identical blue shirts, while his remaining siblings and their families were decked out in green, red or purple shirts.

“We try to have a family reunion every five years or so,” Dorothy said. And the dates of all their previous reunions were listed on the back of the family reunion t-shirts.

Both Dorothy and Gary grew up in this area. Dorothy was born March 26, 1939 at Eatonia and was raised on a farm near Mantario. She attended elementary school at Mantario and then attended high school at Eatonia. She was the second oldest in a family of five children.

Gary and Dorothy’s birthdays are only one day apart, except Gary was born two years later on March 25, 1937 in Kindersley. He grew up on a farm located 2.5 miles south of Marengo, where he attended school.

While growing up, Gary enjoyed curling in the winter and playing ball in the summer. There were plenty of community dances and watching a movie at the Eatonia theatre was another favourite treat. “That’s where we had our first date,” Dorothy recalled.

After high school, Dorothy attended business college in Calgary, and after harvest was done Gary headed to Calgary where he worked in a clothing store for the winter months. On February 20th, 1957 the young couple was married at a small celebration in Calgary.

It was -40 degrees on their wedding day. “My dad couldn’t make it to our wedding. He had cattle and couldn’t leave the farm,” she explained. Otherwise he would have travelled there by train.

“There was a passenger train with the mainline from Saskatoon to Calgary. Groceries and mail were delivered by train,” Gary recalled.

After they were married, the young couple lived on Gary’s parent’s farm. During their first year of marriage they developed a basement, which they lived in before the house was completed the following year.

“One night the snow drifted over the small windows and we didn’t even know when it was day light,” Gary said.

Gary and Dorothy had four children - two girls and two boys. Gary coached the boys’ hockey and ball teams, and the girls were involved in figure skating.

Like most families, they experienced tragic events throughout the years. “We changed houses as our family grew,” Gary said. After their children were no longer living at home, they lost their home in a fire. They lost everything, except for important papers, and lived in their camper trailer for the summer.

“We bought a Nelson home package and built it on the farm in the same place where the previous house had been,” Dorothy said.

Their surrounding community offered their support during another difficult time in their lives. When their son was terminally ill in the hospital, the community organized a harvest bee.

“Ten combines came and combined our crop for us,” Gary said. “It was very touching and our son was very thankful.” He passed away a couple of months later.

Dorothy and Gary enjoyed travelling to numerous destinations throughout the years. “We went to Australia a couple of times; I have a brother there,” Dorothy said. “And we went to Scotland and Ireland with our oldest daughter.”

For thirty-five years, the couple escaped the cold prairie winters and lived in Arizona. “We got to know a lot of people,” Dorothy said. “In the spring we were glad to be back home and in the fall we were glad to go back to Arizona to see all our friends.”

On their 50th wedding anniversary they went on a Caribbean cruise with their kids. “We promised we would take them on a cruise if they promised not to have a big do for our anniversary,” Dorothy said. “We’ve been married for 66 years.”

After renting their farm land for eight or nine years, Gary and Dorothy moved to Medicine Hat where they purchased a home. They lived there for fifteen years before decided to move to Caleb in Kindersley. It’s a convenient location since their children live in Saskatoon and Calgary, and can stop along the way to visit their parents.

“We moved to Caleb in 2019. There’s everything here that we could want. The staff is superb; they couldn’t be better,” Dorothy said. And since they’re enjoying relatively good health, they are looking forward to attending their next family reunion five years from now.