Larry Lee Anderson, 78, of Silver City, NM, entered the presence of his Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ on August 24th, 2026, at Tucson Medical Center, Tucson, Arizona.
He is survived by his wife, Ronda (Maze) of nearly 53 years; his daughter, Rebecca Koebel (Donald); his five grandchildren, Elianna, Liam, Aiden, Declan, and Emmalyn; his sister Rodella Neshem (Galen); his brother, Vance; and numerous nieces and nephews. He is preceded in death by his parents Selmer (Sam) and Hazel Anderson.
Larry was born on September 15, 1947, in Williston, ND to Sam and Hazel and grew up in Bainville, MT on the family farm. He was drafted into the Army and served his country in the Vietnam War working on radio tower transmitters. After his military service, Larry moved to Kalispell, MT, where he met his wife, Ronda, about a year later. They were married on November 23, 1972.
While in Kalispell, he earned a degree in forestry and wildlife and was the very first person to graduate from Flathead Valley Community College. Afterward, he began to work on his pilot's license and obtained it in Arizona. Making a new life in the Southwest, Larry obtained his A&P license to work on aircraft in addition to flying them. With Ronda by his side, they managed multiple airports in Southeast Arizona including Bisbee and Willcox. His daughter, Rebecca, was born during those years at Willcox and remembers the first years of her life surrounded by aviation. Larry loved flying and especially loved doing stalls. He loved his work and rebuilt numerous airplanes. He passed on his love of aircraft with his daughter, who enjoyed helping him do inspections by taking off panels or getting whatever tool he needed. Larry loved cars and riding motorcycles and owned many classic cars in his lifetime. While in Arizona, he attended Southern Arizona Bible College in Hereford. Rebecca has many fond memories as a child of helping reload ammo, going shooting, cutting wood as a family, playing with model trains, and helping in the workshop. As adults, Rebecca and Larry started to rebuild his 1941 J3 Piper Cub.
In 1990, Larry and his family moved to New Mexico where he worked briefly at the aerostat. He missed working on airplanes, so he soon got back into aviation. They moved to Silver City in 1998 where he continued working as an airplane mechanic for many years before becoming the airport manager at the Grant County airport from which he retired.
Larry was a true Renaissance man in that he knew how to do so many things (except maybe modern technology). He was a skilled craftsman and loved woodworking. He built kitchen cabinets, headboards, bookshelves, tables, pulpits, and chess boards among many other things. He also enjoyed making the families traditional Norwegian lefse for Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners.
He adored his grandchildren and loved spending time with them. Together they would do archery, work on model trains, build random things out of wood, reload ammo, and work in the garden. He loved being with his family whether it was camping, watching soccer games, dance recitals, or music. They even got to get him to play the bodhran in The Gila Highlanders. He also enjoyed watching classic Westerns, war films, and documentaries.
Larry loved serving at church wherever they lived. He would spend hours studying the Bible, poring over Scripture to understand what God had said. He was a great example to his family of someone who loved God. His death has left a huge hole in the lives of those who loved him, but they know he is rejoicing with the saints after he lived out 2 Timothy 4:7, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith."
A celebration of his life will be held at First Baptist Church of Silver City with visitation at 11:00 am and the service at 11:30 am followed by burial with military honors at Ft. Bayard National Cemetery at 1:00 pm.
Arrangements are with Terrazas Funeral Chapels "Trusted care for the one you love" ~ 575-537-0777
