Friday, November 7, 2025
Phillip John Anderson Jr. passed away on July 15, 2025, at his home.
He was born on Sept. 15, 1945, to Philip and Vera (Schulz) Anderson at Fort McClellan, Alabama, where his father, a World War II veteran, was stationed. His family moved from Minnesota to the Olympia area in the early 1950s.
He attended Boston Harbor Elementary and graduated from North Thurston High School in 1963. He joined the Green Berets in 1966 and participated in the Vietnam War.
Following his service, he attended Centralia Community College and Central Washington University where he received an undergraduate degree in Social Science. He then reenlisted into the U.S. Army attaining the rank of sergeant. In 1986, he graduated from The Evergreen State College, and then received a Master of Arts in Counseling degree from Saint Martin’s University 10 years later.
Beginning in 1986, he was an Olympia city employee, working at the Olympia Community Recreation Center where he remained until his retirement.
Phil, also known as Snuffy, will be remembered by his friends and family for his sense of humor, his gift of story-telling, his love of learning, his ability to accept anyone he met on their own terms and for who they are, his cheating at cards (he wasn’t alone), and his love of his mother’s lemon meringue pie.
He is preceded in death by his parents and his sister, Mary Elizabeth.
Phil is survived by his brother, Mark Vernon Anderson, and his niece, Alexandra Anderson, both of Sydney, Australia. He is also survived by his cousins Cathy Kirlin and Colleen Allender, both of Lacey, Jeff and Rebeca Allender and Mark Allender all of Seattle, and his longtime good friends Steff and Yarrow Beck of Olympia as well as many others.
A memorial gathering will be held on August 24 at the Forest Shelter in Burfoot Park, 4 p.m., to celebrate Phil’s life.
