Louise Benedicta Anderson
B. February 21, 1909 in Camden Maine
D. April 8, 2002 in Bradenton Florida.
3rd-born child of Annie Gilley Anderson and Anders Anderson. They were
respectively: the daughter of a lighthouse keeper and battle wounded Civil
War veteran who grew up on the lights at Mt. Desert Rock, Mark Island and
Negro Island (now Curtis Island), and the Swedish immigrant sea captain of
numerous great sailing vessels out of Camden and Rockland.
Grew up in Rockland with her older sister Julia and older brother John, and
with her younger brothers Gilbert and Bob and younger sister Marion, who
alone of her siblings, still survives her.
Grew up in an active, loving family of hardworking Christians who were the
bedrock of old-time Maine.
Graduated from Nasson College and became a nutritionist who worked for most
of her adult life in New York City, at Mt. Sinai hospital and other schools
and camps over the years.
She never married, but lived a life full of friends and extended family.
She was beloved by her nieces and nephews, for whom, her summertime arrivals in
Maine were days of great excitement and adventure. She was a kind hearted,
cool-headed woman, with great will and determination, who smiled easily and
dealt with her adversities with great calm and stoicism. She was very proud
of her family and carefully collected and took care of the family history
and artifacts and mementoes and was always free with sharing these memories
and recollections of her ancestors. She was frugal, careful with planning
and a meticulous host and homeowner, keeping records of her visitors who
always signed her guestbook and her accounts and records with equal
commitment.
A highpoint of her life was her visit to Sweden and the ancestral home of
her fathers family. She retired to Florida 30+ years ago, where she lived
an active and giving life as next door neighbor to her beloved sister,
Marion. She worked diligently for her church and for many years anchored the
local Meals on Wheels program delivering food to shut in elderly people.
She read at least a little of the Bible every day and tried to do good and
to be kind and in control, rarely showing real temper greater than annoyance
and always eager to smile or laugh at a funny story.
In her last couple of years, though confined to an assisted living residence
and hospitals, she bore her sufferings with great strength and character and
would often say, "I just try to make the best of it" or "I am a lot better
off than many other people" and other expressions of her faith and
fortitude.
She leaves a long list of nieces, nephews, cousins and friends who treasured
her and loved her.
John Anderson