James Floyd Anderson

Obituary of James Floyd Anderson Born on December 20, 1931, in a parsonage in Grand Junction, Colorado, Jimmy, as he was known to his family, was well-suited to the hard work that characterized his early life on his family's farm. His rich memories of a happy childhood were captured in his memoirs which he penned in the year 2000, describing his parents, older sister, younger brother and many friends with whom he spent his time working, hunting, fishing and developing resilience as his family became itinerant workers during the Great Depression. His memoirs also described the fateful day that a gorgeous brunette greeted him as he stepped off the 10th grade school bus with a less-than-reverent, "hello grandpa". Thus began a nearly 73 year marriage with the love of his life, Nola. Together, they proudly nurtured their four children, Judy, Bruce, Brett and Abbe who went on to produce six grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren. Jim's memoirs talked fondly of his early years farming and raising dairy cattle and equally fondly of his 41-year career with the Public Service Company of Colorado where his hard work, integrity and likeability saw him move from a temporary role in the steam plant in 1952 to a gas worker, lineman, trouble shooter, foreman and finally to district supervisor before he hung up his climbing spikes in 1994. His retirement years were a delight to Nola whose list of gardening projects could at last be prioritized, but also allowed time for Jim's extensive creative talents to be more fully expressed. An accomplished gardener, friend to local wildlife, adept painter, singer, cornet player and inventor of ingenious solutions to any problem kept Jim busy and enjoying a life well lived until he died peacefully at home, surrounded by family on August 3, 2023. If one word had to be chosen to best describe this man, it must surely and simply be... loved. Those who were blessed enough to know him celebrate the life of this beloved son, brother, husband, father, father-in-law, grandfather, great-grandfather, uncle and friend, and entrust his kind soul to his Maker. Jim is survived by his life-long sweetheart, Nola Anderson (nee Christensen), his daughter and son-in-law, Judy and Rex Stevens, his son Bruce Anderson, his daughter-in-law, Debbie Anderson (wife of Brett, deceased 2016), his daughter and daughter-in-law, Abbe Anderson and Elizabeth Jameson along with six grandchildren, Erin, Erica, Angie, Jordan, Eliott and Olivia and eight great-grandchildren, Nathan, Mason, Ethan, Ryan, Tiernan, Mara-Lynn, Merick and Erik.