All it took was an invitation from his high school classmate to travel four-and-a-half hours north to check out the University of Minnesota Crookston and alumnus Dana Anderson 1975 knew he had found his college home. It felt like a community everyone could fit in to, he recalled, and would become the place he would make some of the best friends of his life.
Anderson was involved in sports and activities during the two years he attended U of M Crookston pursuing his associate’s degree in park and recreational area management. His football journey couldn’t have gone any better as the 1973 team won the state championship and Anderson was named Student Athlete of the Year in 1975.
“I was pretty involved at UMC with football and track, and intramural sports, and I was even in the Earth Day play thanks to my friends who talked me into it,” shared Anderson. “I think my graduating class was smaller than my high school, but you got to know everyone well like provost, Stan Sahlstrom.”
In 1999, the 1973 championship football team was inducted into the U of M Crookston Athletic Hall of Fame and were celebrated at the alumni awards ceremony. Twenty-four years later, a championship banner honoring their team was raised in Lysaker Gymnasium starting a new era of recognition.
Anderson and his former football teammates have remained close over the last 50 years and continue to get together a few times a year whether it’s for a Gophers game, at Lake Osakis, pheasant hunting, or in Alexandria, Minn.
“Between so many of us, we might have been one of the first in our families with college degrees,” Anderson stated. “Now our children are going to college, some in the Big 10, and doing incredible things.”
Following graduation from U of M Crookston, Anderson went on to Minnesota State University Mankato where he received a bachelor’s degree in natural resources with an emphasis in parks and recreation. Yet even before his college excursions, Anderson began working part-time for the overnight stock crew at Madsen’s Super Valu grocery store. After receiving his degrees, he remained in the grocery industry for the next 44 years at Erickson’s Super Valu, Jerry’s Enterprise, and the last 14 years at Cub Foods before retiring.
“I learned a lot from working in the grocery industry,” said Anderson. “I was always trying to understand the customer service part and learn the profit and loss side of things like why you put certain things on display and why promote this and not that. I learned the art of the deal and cost of goods, and tried to find the best price to pass on to the consumer. I also enjoyed learning the market I was in and catering to that area to meet the needs of different clientele.”
Anderson and his wife, Tina, have been married for 48 years and enjoy spending time growing tomatoes and flowers, doing projects at their lake cabin, and being with their three children and twin granddaughters. They love to travel which last year led them to Paris while on a 12-day European tour. They’ve also been to Rome, Greece, Turkey, on cruises to Alaska and through the Caribbean, and to the Grand Canyon. During the winter months, they spend time in Georgia watching their grandchildren participate in sports.
“I retired January 1, 2021 and retirement is all it’s cracked up to be,” joked Anderson. “Now I just have to remember which day is garbage day.”
