A memorial service for Gary will be held at the Central Christian Church in Marshalltown on Saturday, August 18, 2018, at 10:30 a.m. with Pastor Diana Frieberg officiating. Public visitation will be held one hour prior to the service. Memorial contributions may be directed in Gary’s name to Central Christian Church, House of Compassion, Emergency Food Box and/or Child Abuse Prevention Services. Mitchell Family Funeral Home in Marshalltown is caring for Gerald and his family and may be reached at 641-844-1234 or visit www.mitchellfh.com.

Gerald (Gary) DeWayne Anderson was born February 5, 1930, in Boone, Iowa, to Paul W. Anderson and Velvo (Jones) Anderson. Gary graduated from Boone High School in 1948. He enlisted in the U.S. Army in August 1948 through February 1950. He was recalled in September 1950 and the following month he saw combat in Korea. He was wounded and taken prisoner of war in April 1951. He was listed as MIA (Missing In Action) by the U.S. Army. Later, a Chinese general, Choi, released Gary and 14 other prisoners.

After the war, Gary attended Iowa State University on the GI Bill. He met Lois Jones and they married on June 25, 1952. They lived in Pammel Court, in a Quonset hut on the ISU campus while he was a student and she was a Northwestern Bell telephone operator.

They were expecting their third child when they moved to Marshalltown in 1956 after Gary graduated from Iowa State with a BA in Mechanical Engineering. Gary later earned his MA in Mechanical Engineering, also at ISU.

During the summer of 1955, Gary worked for Collins Radio Company, now Rockwell Collins, in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. In Marshalltown, Gary was hired at Fisher Controls (now Emerson) as a research engineer in the Education Department. Gary volunteered his lunch hours to mentor Miller Junior High School students in algebra during the 1970s. He also coached Little League baseball and sixth grade football teams through the YMCA. With Sheldon Lloyd, Gary co-authored in 1971 Industrial Process Control, a textbook still in use for the control industry and education market.

When he retired, he established GAI Incorporated, and worked for Fisher in that capacity, as well as for Puffer-Sweiven from 1986 until sometime during the late 1990s. His work took him to Australia, Japan, Venezuela and Canada. When he retired the second time, he always drank his coffee from his Puffer-Sweiven mug, until it was worn out.

The family wishes to thank the Veteran’s Administration of Des Moines, Iowa, for the exemplary care they provided to Gerald.

Gary was preceded in death by his wife, Lois, in March 2016; his parents and a brother, Donald (Janice) Lee Anderson.

He is survived by a brother, Gene (Bonnie) Anderson and by his children, Linda (Christopher) Kondrath; Denise Anderson and her husband Jim Feeney; Alan Anderson; Dennis Anderson; granddaughters Jessica Kondrath and Tammy (Scott) Losing; great-granddaughter Skylar Brisson; nephews, nieces and many friends.