Gordon and Alene (Porter) Anderson both grew up in Ammon, Idaho, about a block from each other. As children they attended the same school, worshiped in the same chapel, and shared many of the same friends. Gordon was the youngest living sibling. His father, Joseph Andersson, and older brothers were prominent man in community and state affairs. Joseph died in 1932 when Gordon was 16 years of age. This was a blow to the entire family. The older children were married and involved with their own families, but they did their best to support their mother and help her. Gordon, now the only child at home, was now responsible for much of the resonsibility of farm life and tending livestock, growing feed, and sustaining life for himself and his mother. He learned to work hard and had a wide range of skills that served him well all his years.
At age 19 Gordon accepted the call to serve a full-time mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in Denmark, the land of his ancestry. He spent three years in Denmark and learned to speak the language fluently.
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Gordon and his cousin Duane in Aarhus, Denmark, 1 June 1936. Handwritten note by Gordon on the back of photo says "Duane is sleepy." |
