Albert Lester Anderson passed away peacefully at Chehalis West Assisted Living Center in Chehalis, Washington, on June 4, 2025, at the age of 100, just short of his 101st birthday.
Albert was born to Jack and Ingeborg Anderson on July 19, 1924, in Littell, Washington. He had two older sisters, Francis and Alberta; one younger sister, Katherine; and four younger brothers, Louis, John, Bill, and Fritz. Albert lived his whole life in the Littell or Adna areas, except for a short period in the U.S. Army. He went to school in Adna and joined the Army near the end of World War II. He was stationed in the Aleutian Islands of Alaska for a little over a year. While home from the Army following completion of his basic training, he married Emma Lou Cabe.
After completion of his time in the Army, Albert returned to Adna, where he and Emma Lou would make their longtime home, which included building a new house on the property in the early 1950s. Also upon returning from the Army, he began work at the Chehalis Cannery, where he would advance through numerous job responsibilities that took advantage of his incredible innate mechanical mind, eventually becoming the maintenance manager for the Cannery. Albert remained with the Cannery for 47 years, retiring in 1992 and having the company’s State Street facility dedicated to him by its owners.
Albert and Emma Lou were deeply rooted in the Adna area, where they both went to school and where Albert would live in the same house for the vast majority of his life. Albert and Emma Lou had two sons, Dery and Rick, both of whom attended Adna schools. Albert, along with Emma Lou, was very active with their sons — building them a pitching mound in the backyard where they would hone their pitching skills, taking them fishing in local streams and lakes, coaching their baseball teams, teaching them to hunt deer, grouse, ducks, etc., and helping both of them rebuild the engines in their first cars.
Upon their sons completing high school and moving out of the family home, leaving Albert and Emma Lou as empty nesters, they began to travel more. But as Albert approached retirement, Emma Lou passed away suddenly and unexpectedly in 1989. After a couple of years primarily focusing on his work, Albert retired and connected with Blanche Jobes. They enjoyed their daily coffee, eating out, and traveling until Blanche passed away in late 2020.
Albert was preceded in death by his parents and all of his brothers and sisters, but is survived by his sons and their wives, Dery and Linda of Adna, and Rick and Lori of Richland. He is also survived by five grandchildren, Eric, Kristi, Angie, Gary, and Sheila; nine great-grandchildren; and four great-great-grandchildren.
A graveside service will be held Thursday, June 26, 2025, at 1 p.m. at Claquato Cemetery and will be followed by a reception at the Adna Grange.
