Margaret L Collins Anderson

AnnaMargaret was born in Minot, ND on June 23, 1937. She was the

the third of four children born to Leone (Irwin) (01/21/1910 - 03/16/2006) and

Paul Collins (04/22/1900 - 01/26/1976). AnnaMargaret was born at home,

which was a 20' X 20' tar paper shack by the time she was born.

AnnaMargaret was named after several relatives and friends. She always

thought her name was a bit unwieldy. So, she went by Margaret for most of

her life, although her family members continued to call her AnnaMargaret.

She hated being called Anna.

For most of her adult life, Margaret stood 5'4" tall. She ranged from an

average build to overweight. She had shoulder length dark brown hair, and

green eyes. She also wore glasses most of the time. She had a big smile

which lit up her whole face. She loved to laugh and would often tease

relatives. She was very outgoing and loved to talk to people. However, she

could also be very stubborn (almost as much as her son) and quick-tempered

at times.

In 1944, Margaret’s mother divorced her father and moved to Seattle

with her children. In 1946, Margaret’s mother married her step-father,

Millard Ship man. They moved to Tacoma. Margaret’s youngest sister, Judy,

was born the following year.

Margaret’s oldest sister, Virginia, took her to the Nazarene church

when she was growing up. Later, Margaret became a member of

Presbyterian and Lutheran churches. She most recently belonged to Trinity

Lutheran Church, in Victorville, CA.

Margaret did well in school, overall. During 8th grade, she made a

ceramic sculpture of a horse for which she was awarded a Scholastic Regional

Art Award. Her entry was then sent to the Carnegie Institute, in Pittsburgh,

for the selection of finalists for the National High School Art Exhibition.

Unfortunately, Margaret had a gym accident in 9th grade. She injured

her back and it was not properly cared for. As a result, Margaret suffered

from chronic back pain for the rest of her life. The pain did not always flare

up, but it was frequent. It got worse in her later life.

Margaret graduated from Lincoln High School, in Tacoma, in 1955.

(She enjoyed attending her high school reunions when she could.) Margaret

worked as a secretary and full-charge bookkeeper for various employers from

1955 to 1997. She also worked part-time for Macy’s for a few years in the

1980s. Margaret married her first husband, Robert Prince, in 1957 and

divorced him in 1963. She moved to Southern California with him, in 1959.

Margaret met Verne Anderson in 1963 at a bowling alley where they

both played in the same league on separate teams. Margaret and Verne's

brother-in-law, Keith Baudoin, were on the same team. Keith played Verne

up so much that Margaret was almost afraid to meet him because of how

much Keith might be overselling him. However, she did agree to go out with

Verne. Then Verne made the mistake of going out with a friend during the

day before his date with Margaret. Verne and his friend had so many beers

that Verne got sick that night and had to take Margaret home early. In spite

of that, Margaret agreed to go out with Verne again. Margaret married

Verne on April 30, 1964, at Wilshire Presbyterian Church, in Santa Ana, CA.

They were married for almost 49 years when Verne died on March 6, 2013.

They had one child, Kent, who was born in 1965.

In 1971, Margaret and her family left Southern California and moved to

the Sacramento Area. Six months later, Verne got a different job and they

moved to Reno. They moved to Carson City, NV in November, 1976. Verne

switched jobs again and the family moved back to the Sacramento Area in

March, 1977. They moved back to the Reno area in August, 1978. Verne and

Margaret remained in the Reno area, until they retired in August, 1997.

They then moved to Victorville, CA where they lived for the remainder of

their lives.

Margaret continued to enjoy bowling for many years until it became too

hard on her back. She usually played with Verne in a mixed league once a

week. Margaret also loved to play pinochle. Whenever any family members

or friends, who played pinochle, visited her and Verne, they were guaranteed

to play several games of four-handed pinochle after dinner.

Margaret and Verne also loved to go camping for many years. They

took Kent on several weekend camping trips to Davis Creek State Park, near

Reno. Occasionally, they also went to other campgrounds in the Sierras. In

1974, the family took their pickup and camper to the Tacoma and Seattle

area to help celebrate the 65th Anniversary of Margaret’s grandparents.

Then, they went to the World’s Fair in Spokane, Washington with Margaret’s

sister Judy, her husband Wayne, and their son Tim. In the summer of 1975,

the family took a camping vacation and toured Lehmann Caves, Zion Canyon,

Bryce Canyon, and the North Rim of the Grand Canyon.

In addition, Margaret was a voracious reader. She enjoyed romance

and mystery novels.

Margaret joined the Beta Sigma Phi sorority in the early 1980s. She

remained a member until she died. For most of those years, Margaret was

very active in sorority. She loved to go to conventions, especially when she

could go with her sisters, Virginia and Judy.

Margaret enjoyed working as a volunteer at the San Bernardino County

Fair from about 2000 to about 2010.

She became active in the Merry Widows group after Verne died. She

enjoyed going to lunches and events with this group. Margaret joined the

Hesperia Elks Lodge in 2016 or 2017. She enjoyed playing cards and going to

events there.

AnnaMargaret loved her extended family very much. She loved to visit

them or have them visit her any chance she got. Many of her nieces and

nephews have fond memories of being babysat by her and then spending time

with her in later life.

Margaret was fairly healthy for most of her life, except for sinus and

allergy problems and migraines. However, she had to have open-heart

surgery to replace her aorta, repair another valve, and do two bypasses in

August, 2018. She did well for a few months after that. Then she started

having other problems which caused her to have several trips to the hospital

from May to November, 2019. She ended up being diagnosed with: congestive

heart failure, cirrhosis caused by something other than alcohol, and chronic

kidney disease. Margaret moved into assisted living less than a month before

she died. Her care team did not expect her to die as soon as she did.

Margaret was thrilled when Kent met, fell in love with, and got

engaged to Katrina last year. Fortunately, they got married before Margaret

died. She was very happy about that.

Margaret was preceded in death by her: mother, one sister, one niece,

and one nephew. She is survived by her: son, Kent Anderson; daughter-in-

law, Katrina Ellman; sister Virginia Williams, brother Lee Collins, sister

Judy (Wayne) Morgan; nine nieces; two nephews; and several other relatives.

Margaret and Verne were buried on May 1st with Margaret’s mother, at

Mountain View Cemetery in Lakewood, Washington. A funeral and

celebration of life party will be held in Victorville some time after people are

allowed to gather in groups again. There will also be a wake or celebration of

life in Tacoma, WA.