Longtime Lake Bluff Volunteer, Richard Andersen, Dies

The following obituary is courtesy of Wenban Funeral Home.

Richard Alfred Andersen, 87, a lifelong resident of Lake Forest and Lake Bluff, died November 11, 2015. He is survived by his loving wife of 62 years, Anne nee Lackie; father of Linn (William) Carey, Brad (Nancy) Andersen, Sally (Robert) Bickel, Jean (Jeffery) Ott; grandfather of William Carey, Ryan (Emily), Sean and Brady Andersen, Katherine and Christopher Bickel, Andrew and Thomas Ott; great-grandfather of Warren and Lila Andersen and brother John (Virginia) Andersen. Dick graduated from Lake Forest H.S. in 1946 (his friends there, including his wife, knew him as Andy). He served two years in the Marines before enrolling at the University of Michigan, where he was a member of the Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity. Upon graduation in 1952 with a B.A. in Economics, Dick was hired by the First National Bank of Chicago, where he worked for the next 33 years, finally as a V.P. in the Trust Department-Real Estate Division. In that position he travelled extensively to Europe and the Middle East; he enjoyed sharing many stories from those travels with family and friends. Upon retirement, Dick took further interest in his building materials companies, G.L. Blanchard and Dealers Ready Mix. Always active in his community, Dick served as a Lake Bluff volunteer firefighter, a Little League coach, a girls’ softball coach, a trustee of Union Church of Lake Bluff, and created the Lake Bluff Police Pension Fund. Family roots are well established in Ashland County, Wisconsin, and he honored those roots by serving for many years on the Board of Trustees of Northland College. He was instrumental in establishing the Green Lake Conservancy in Wisconsin, where Anne and he spent much fun time with family and friends. Ever the outdoorsman; Dick enjoyed golfing, hunting, trap-shooting and boating, even once “shooting his age” of 79 in golf! Memorial visitation will begin at 10:00am, followed by a Memorial Service at 11:00am, on Saturday, November 21, 2015 in the Vail Room at Lake Forest Place, 1100 Pembridge Dr, Lake Forest, IL. In lieu of flowers, the family would appreciate contributions to The Geneva Foundation, Presbyterian Homes, 3200 Grant St, Evanston, IL, 60201, or to JourneyCare, 2050 Claire Ct, Glenview, IL, 60025.