Allegany- Richard Carl Anderson, 77 a retired Portville, New York school teacher died at his home in Allegany, New York on December 24, 2020.
Mr. Anderson was born in Olean, New York on April 10, 1943. He was one of four children of the late Ruth Olive Rottstedt Anderson and the late Carl Joseph Gilbert Anderson.
He graduated from Portville Central School in 1961, and was a member of the Portville Panthers Football Junior and Senior Varsity teams. He went on to higher education at the State University of New York – New Paltz, and the State University of New York – Brockport (where he received a BS in Physical Education). During his collegiate years at Brockport, he spent four years on the varsity football team, as well at the soccer team. While at Brockport he enrolled in the military ROTC program and upon graduation was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the United States Marine Corps. It was also during his years at Brockport that he met his future wife Lilija (Lee) Cainaru. The couple were married on February 17, 1968, at The First Presbyterian Church in Portville, New York.
He served in the Viet Nam war 1966-68 and retired with the rank of Captain. During his military service he was awarded the Bronze Star. Following his military service he enrolled in a graduate studies program at Syracuse University where he earned a MS in Education. And upon graduation from Syracuse, he was hired as Physical Education teacher and a sports coach at Portville Central School, in Portville, New York. He also completed a second Master’s degree (in School Administration) at Saint Bonaventure University. Later he was hired as the Health Education teacher, a new position inaugurated by the state, he held for 32 years before retiring.
Following in his father’s footsteps he served several terms as a trustee with the Village of Portville.
Additionally, he was very active in the POW-MIA movement both locally and nationally. He worked tireless to ensure that one of his platoon members who was severely wounded in Viet Nam and died as a result of the related causes was memorialized at the Viet Nam National Military Memorial in Washington, DC. He subsequently was interviewed in a pre-Memorial Day National celebration by ABC TV-News and participated in the ceremonies for the induction of his platoon member David Kamp.
A consummate athlete throughout his lifetime, he ran in the Inaugural Marine Marathon Race in Washington, DC and three successive national marathons. He also worked to see that Viet Nam Memorials were established in several New York state communities including one in Portville, New York. Additionally, in May of 2017 he joined his son Cortney (in Memphis, Tennessee) to finish Cortney’s cross country bike ride to Washington, DC to honor the POW-MIA service members.
He was predeceased by his sister Kathryn Ruth Anderson McDivitt. He is survived by his wife, son Christopher Carl (Angela)Anderson, grandson William Richard Anderson, and son Cortney Lane Anderson (of Salt Lake City, Utah. His brother, James Theodore Anderson of Reston, Virginia; and his sister Christine Anderson (Terry) Walden of Weston Mills, New York, brother-in-law O. Boyce McDivitt.
Private memorial services will follow at a later date. Please make memorials to Wounded Warriors Foundation.
Funeral arrangements are under the direction of the Guenther Funeral Home, Inc.