C.O. "ANDY" ANDERSON / 1921-2006
Civic leader devoted his best efforts to help Waipahu
C.O. "Andy" Anderson, 84, a dedicated civic leader and chairman of the Waipahu Neighborhood Board, died Jan. 1 in Tripler Army Medical Center. He was 84.
Anderson, born in Floyd, Iowa, and a retired U.S. Marine Corps master gunnery sergeant, will be "one of the most missed people in Waipahu," said Annette Yamaguchi, a longtime friend and longtime member of the Waipahu Neighborhood Board.
Anderson was committed to the community not only by his affiliation with civic groups such as the neighborhood board, the independent living board, the Waipahu Library and the Waipahu cultural park, Yamaguchi said, but by his actions on their behalf.
"If he was president, he was the best president," she said. "If he collected dues, he would come to your door."
Yamaguchi said that was how she met Anderson 30-plus years ago, when he was president of the subdivision's board. Even then, he was knocking on doors to spread information and remind members to pay their dues.
While certainly not a happy-go-lucky type, Anderson was a bright, funny man and an avid storyteller with a quick mind, she said.
"You could talk to Andy about anything," Yamaguchi added. "He always had something good to say."
But it was his dedication to Waipahu that makes Anderson irreplaceable, she said.
"He never took anything lightly. If he had a certain responsibility, you could count on it getting done, and done the way it should be."
Anderson is survived by daughters Andrea and Karen, brother Bernard and sister Audrey Stewart.
Services are scheduled for 4:30 p.m. Monday at the Mystical Rose Oratory of Chaminade and Saint Louis campus.
In lieu of flowers, donations are suggested to the Hawaii Plantation Village or the Leeward Young Men's Christian Association.