Bob Anderson finishes at Boise mill, but says there’s still work to be done

In explaining his longevity, Anderson quotes author Pearl S. Buck: “To find joy in work is to discover the fountain of youth.”

And according to many, Anderson’s energy and positive attitude lend credibility to Buck’s comment.

Anderson began working for the company that is now Boise Sept. 13, 1960, as a laborer in Insulite. Six or seven months later, he became a paper tester, of which he served as supervisor for four or five years. He became quality control supervisor, responsible for paper machine quality, specifications and production planning. During that time, he also did technical service work when technical service representative Howard Milette was on vacation or there were multiple issues to be handled.

In 1982, Anderson worked in the Human Resources Department, becoming a productivity coordinator responsible for improving efficiency of the mill and modernizing the labor agreements within the mill.

For the last 26 years of his career at the mill, he served as communications manager, with the title of the position later renamed by the company to public affairs manager. In this effort he served as spokesman for the mill, coordinating events, projects, and publications among other duties.

Anderson followed in the steps of his grandfather, father, and several uncles who he said enjoyed a great lifestyle, thanks to the mill’s employment.

“I certainly owe everything I have to the fact that there is a mill in this town and they gave me an opportunity to work there,” he said.

Anderson’s retirement was marked with a certificate from the state’s governor and a letter from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources commissioner — rare recognitions.

In honor of Anderson’s retirement, a company open house Oct. 9 drew many people from all facets of Anderson’s life. Commonplace among speakers at the event were phrases like “dedication comes from his heart and soul,” “Bob knows everybody in the state and everybody knows Bob,” “he truly cares,” “is one of the most positive people I have ever met,” “made a great impact beyond International Falls and Koochiching County.”

Boise Woodyard Superintendent Dennis Kennedy simply listed several words describing Anderson, a few of which included: tenacious, demanding, change agent, leader, caring, and negotiator.

Building relationships and friendships are keys to success in a career, community service and a personal life, according to Anderson. And all three dimensions of Anderson’s life have benefited by his success as a relationship and friendship builder, he said.

A positive attitude

Anderson’s first job, at about age 5, was delivering The Daily Journal newspaper, and its coverage of political stories encouraged a life of public service, he said.

He learned about building connections early. He says he had the good fortune in his five-year stint as a newspaper carrier to deliver to the employment supervisor. That supervisor remembered Anderson when he first sought work at the mill, he notes.

Another key to success, says Anderson, is attitude.

“You get up every morning and you can decide what kind of day it’s going to be,” he told The Journal last week. “I just always felt that having a positive day was going to be most fruitful for the mill, the community and myself.”

A positive attitude goes hand-in-hand with leadership, he added. “To exhibit that, and if you have that with a vision, you’re going to be more successful in implementing that vision, working in those goals that you have in life,” he said.

Anderson thanks the mill and its managers for encouraging employees to serve the community. And that tends to blur where Anderson’s work for and with the mill and the forest-industry related organizations ends and the public service to the larger community begins. For many, some of the efforts are one and the same. What’s good for the mill is good for the community, and vice versa, according to many in the community.

Anderson’s leadership in transportation, both air and vehicle on several levels, was spurred by his view within the mill. He sees convenient and safe travel in the air and on the road as critical to the success of the mill, and in connection, to the community.

Anderson has met with dignitaries and officials at all levels of government and elsewhere in his Boise duties. He points to testifying before Congress on air transportation with former Congressman Jim Oberstar and former Sen. Dave Durenberger among the highlights of his career.

Another of those moments as representative of the company came when he and his wife, Carol, had lunch with the king and queen of Sweden.

Public service success

Anderson said serving as public affairs manager was his favored position while working in the mill because it allowed him to work with other entities, ranging from governments to forest products organizations to civic groups.

“When I was working in those other positions, I was also on the city council and mayor for an 18-year period,” he said. “I like working with the community and organizations throughout the state. The company was very supportive of that work.”

During that time, he also served as president of the League of Minnesota Cities, headed up the Local Airline Service Action Committee, and the Minnesota Chamber, of which he has served as chairman.

Anderson attended classes at Rainy River Community College in 1966, the same year that Boise Cascade purchased from Mando mills in the Falls, Fort Frances and Kenora. That early connection led to his leadership in later years on the RRCC Foundation Board.

“It gave me great help,” he said of RRCC. “I was a student there a number of times. Taking creative writing and other courses helped to fit the work I was doing.”

Beginning as a laborer and moving up the ranks in the mill provided an opportunity for Anderson to better understand the inner workings of the mill and its employees.

“We saw in the Boise Cascade organization that other mills were getting large projects, capital infusions, and wondered what we needed to do to be successful in getting the company’s attention up here,” he said. “We knew we had to continue to work hard and prove this mill was worthy of an investment, and of course, that led to the expansion of 1989 through 1993, about a four-year period.”

He noted that after the new paper machine, bleach plant and pulp mill expansions, a need for two more sheeters was satisfied in 1992 and along with that environmental equipment installed.

“All of that triggered something close to a $1 billion investment,” he said. “And that certainly rewrote the opportunity for this mill to succeed.”

And as with any job, there are low points. He pointed to labor strife during the expansion. “It was a very challenging time, but we understood what was at the end and we just needed to get there and to do so with as much grace as we possibly could,” he said.

Anderson said partnerships, including the one he has with his wife Carol, is the other leg of the three-legged stool of success. He, and several at his retirement recognition, noted that Carol kept the home fires burning when Bob was away handling work or civic duties. Anderson said he probably averaged one month away from home each year.

What’s ahead

With no big life changes planned, Anderson said he’ll also catch up on a few projects at home and at his cabin near Big Falls. He says he’ll spend more time with his grown children and five grandchildren, one of which, Jenna, wrote a poem about Anderson and read it to those gathered at his retirement benefit.

With his mill job behind him, Anderson says he’ll continue to rise early to plan days that will employ the skills and talents he has honed inside and outside the mill. He will continue to serve the many groups and organizations he is now involved with.

Anderson takes great joy in seeing problems, finding solutions and implementing them, he said. “I am maybe sometimes too tenacious,” he said smiling.

Among other issues he will continue to tackle, he will serve a newly established mileage-based user fee task force developed by the Minnesota Department of Transportation. The group will consider ways to ensure that vehicles that don’t now pay a gas tax, such as electric cars, pay their fair share of the road maintenance.

“There are still things to do,” he said, listing some of the many task forces and organizations in which he plays a leadership role. “And that’s what makes it fun.”