Everyone has great things to say about their own child, but when it came to Erik, everyone had great things to say about him. Erik was a wonderful child to raise. He was kind, had a great personality and he was very talented. He respected everyone around him and picked his friends with great care. Erik didn't care about being the big jock in school, or trying to impress people. He was himself, you took him as is or you didn't hang out with him. The thing is, everyone did. He managed to make tons of friends just being himself.
From the time Erik was very young it was apparent he had a great gift for carpentry. Whether it was lego's, Knex's, toothpicks, or popsicle sticks, he could build great buildings, houses, or whatever his mind could come up with. He had a architecture program on the computer and built his dream home countless times. He was in his glory when he was building. If he was asked to go on a trip to Disneyworld, or help build a house, he would pick the house! When it came to his career he also didn't care if he was a doctor, or lawyer etc... He wanted to build houses, and all that mattered to him is he did what he loved. He would have been great at it, I have no doubt. It saddens me I will never see his work. Erik also had a great love of music, I guess you could call it a family history. Music was all around him growing up. In high school, his Ipod, pep band, and his saxophone were a huge part of his life.
The day Erik was taken from us is a day I will never be able to explain to anyone. It's not something you can prepare for, and it's not something your heart will ever mend from. We have accepted what has happened, and are able to move forward with smiles more than tears now, as we remember what a great kid he was. However, that will never fill the permanent void our hearts will always have. I'm so grateful to have had Erik for 16 years, and have tons of wonderful memories. It's not up to me to understand at this point why this happened, I have to trust in god there are reasons I will understand someday. We love you Erik, and miss you beyond words and someday we will see one another again.
Love you always....
~Here are some of the things Erik loved~
~~We also can't forget his video games & letter jacket~~
Links & Videos
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gPy5aGQuzx8
Thanks to Ronnie's mom for making this video
http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=58825319
Eriks MySpace memorial page
http://www.minnesotansforsafedriving.com/
On MFSD site, click on "stories" to find Erik's
http://lsmma.com/webcam.htm
Erik's favorite place to visit. Duluth, MN
"The Simpsons" & "South Park"
Erik's other family members. LOL
*NEWS*
*Erik's story has been choosen by Wright County for Drivers Ed, and will be used for the next 3 years to educate new teen drivers on what can happen when your careless on the roadway. It will be mandatory that the teens attend the class with their parents. The hope is this program will save lives!!
*Erik's memorial benches have been placed at Delano High School at the top of the outdoor auditorium. A plaque has been placed behind the benches but the principle is not happy with it, nor are we. They have had a few problems with it, and we are STILL in the process of getting them fixed.
*Erik's site has a new feature! You can pick the song you want to listen too when visiting his site. Right above the "Family Tree" icon on the left hand column, you will see the music note icon, and next to it you can choose a song. I have taken all the songs I have had on his site in the past to put on this list. I did not use the songs Erik had on his IPod because many of us cannot relate to them, and they are totally meant for a teenage boy! LOL
*Under the Audio/Video tab, check out the infomercial video that Erik and Kale did for a school project. I cherish it! It has Erik's laugh, his voice, and his goofy personality. It's also nice it was done with one of his best friends!
*New pictures of Erik have been added to the Photo Gallery! Thank you to the Anderson's for the pictures! If anyone else has pictures of Erik, I would love to have them. It means more than you know!
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**UPDATED**
If you would like to contribute to the Erik Anderson Memorial Fund, there is a "Donation" button on the left hand side of this website, above the cross graphic. Click on it and it will bring you to a page where you can donate.
Each year we have been giving to many different things. If we hear a family has fallen on hard times, we want to help. Working at the school has really helped me find families that are in need! We help families in need all year long, not just around the holidays! We still plan on helping families around the holidays, but want to make sure it's not just at that time that we give. Erik's memorial fund helps us give more than we would be able to on our own. Some of the things we do give too are not being listed for the simple fact we do it anonymously. In the true spirit of giving, you don't look for recognition in return!
I recently attended a staff meeting at work and presented them with our newest idea. At Christmas time you hear about the radio stations and other organizations doing the shoeboxes full of goodies for kids in need around the world. I have wanted to do something through my work for a while now. All of us in the kitchen thought it would be nice if we could organize something, and give back. So for the 2009 holiday season we want to organize our own shoebox campaign and we are calling it "Cooking up Christmas for Kids." We will ask each classroom to help fill a shoebox for a boy or a girl. They can fill it with treats, little toys, anything they think would make a child happy! Each box requires a $5 shipping fee. Erik's Memorial fund will be picking up that $5 fee for each box donated!! I'm very excited to start this, and plan on it being an annual event! The success of this campaign depends largely on donations to Erik's memorial fund! Please find it in your heart to keep Erik's memory alive by donating! Thank you!!!
There are many other things we hope to do with Erik's memorial fund as the years pass. We want to see it grow to be bigger & better! With your help we can achieve this. We would like to see his fund grow to be able to continue to do the things we already are, but also be able to offer other services as well. Thank you so much to all that help support Erik's memorial fund, it is greatly appreciated by us, and all the families that benefit from it!!
Thank you to Auntie Lisa & Russ for their generous donation in Erik's memory to the Dolly Parton Imagination Library in Tn. This donation will allow many children to receive one book each month for a year! The memory of Erik will live on in the lives of these children.
Thank you to Grandma Dorothy Anderson for her very generous contribution to Erik's Memorial Fund. It was made in Memory of Erik's Grandpa Joe Anderson, who was tragically killed in January 2008.
When viewing the slidehow. Hold your cursor over the picture in the slideshow window to view captions.
Hey Erik,
You always did such a great job at making Mothers Day great for me. Even if you didn't have a lot of money. You would make me something really cool, or buy some little thing for me. Now Dale & your friends do their best to make the day special for me and make new memories. Brittany sent me a card, Ashley left a Mothers Day message on the answering machine, and the boys, Dan, Evan & Peter gave me flowers. Dale got me my cool pink fishing pole I wanted for a long time. It lights up when you turn the reel. LOL What can I say, Shirley got one, and I had to have one, so Dale found one and got it for me all the way from Florida! :) Dale also got me flowers. Your Auntie Lisa calls too, she is always good about that kinda stuff. I'm posting pictures so everyone can see how wonderful the people in my life are. They don't have to get me anything, just knowing they care is enough. They make a really hard part of my life, a little easier.
Flowers from Dan, Evan and Peter
Flowers from Dale.
My cool fishing rod that is going to give Dale seizures. LOL
Erik, I don't know why I was thinking about this today since it's no where near your Mom's birthday, but I was thinking about one time when you and your Mom were alone. I had a birthday party for your Mom at my house. Some time before the party, I took you to the store so you could pick out a present and a cake for your Mom. I can't remember what you got for a present, but I remember telling you to pick out something you thought your Mom would like, so for the cake, you picked out a sheet cake covered in cars and trucks. LOL!! I wish I knew what you were thinking. I mean, were you thinking she would really just love that cars and trucks cake because you liked it so you thought everyone else would want that kind of cake or were you thinking she would like the cake and you could have the cars. ROFLMBO! Either way, it was so sweet that you picked that one.
