John C. Anderson, 78, Retired Blue Cross Manager

John C. "Andy" Anderson, of 87 Sherry Avenue, Bristol, died Thursday, November 14, 2013 at Rhode Island Hospital, Providence. He was 78.

He was the husband of Mary Lou (Silvia) Anderson, his wife of 56 years. Born in Newport, he was a son of the late John M. and Jessie Alice (Buckles) Anderson.

Anderson was a resident of Bristol for 56 years. He served in the US Air Force during the Korean Conflict. He was a graduate of De La Salle Academy in Newport and the Northeast Broadcasting School in Boston, MA.

He was a Market Research Manager for Blue Cross & Blue Shield of RI for 33 years, retiring in 1995. He had previously worked for WPRO Radio and WPRI TV Channel 12 for 5 years as a News Editor/Reporter.

He was a communicant of St. Elizabeth's Church, Bristol, where he and his wife were Lectors and active in Marriage Encounter. He was an accomplished woodcarver and had won numerous awards in regional and national competitions and had carved the front entrance doors to his parish church, St. Elizabeth's Church and was a member of the National Woodcarver's Association and the Yankee Woodcarver's Club and was a frequent participant in the RI Audubon's annual Bird and Animal Carving Exhibition at the Bristol Education Facility.

He was an avid outdoorsman and a member of the RI Audubon Association, Trout Unlimited and the Veterans of Foreign Wars and a former member of the Hydraulion Engine and Hose Co. No. 1 of the Bristol Volunteer Fire Department.

In addition to his wife, he is survived by six children, John "Jack" Anderson, Jr. (Amy) of Riverside, Michael Anderson (Gena) of Barto, PA, William "Bill" Anderson (Lisa) of Rehoboth, MA, Kathleen Rohrman (Karl) of Warren, Mary Alice Heuschel (Gene) of Renton, WA and Tricia Martins (Dean) of Portsmouth, two brothers, Andrew Anderson (Brenda) of Tiverton and Bernard Anderson (Lee) of Oklahoma City, OK and eleven grandchildren, Joshua A. Neblett (Sarah), Morgan E. Salazar (Kenny), Kaitlin V. Anderson, Jillian K. McGrath, Andrew K. Rohrman, Daniel P. McGrath, Jacob M. Anderson, Sarah A. Rohrman, Liza L. Anderson, Liam A. Anderson and Elizabeth K. Anderson.

Funeral services from the Sansone Funeral Home, 192 Wood Street, Bristol, will be on Monday, November 18, at 10 am with a Mass of Christian Burial at 11 am in St. Elizabeth's Church, 577 Wood Street, Bristol. Burial will be private.

Visiting hours are today, November 17, from 2 to 6 pm. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Columban Fathers Retirement Center, 65 Ferry Road, or to St. Elizabeth's Church, 577 Wood Street, Bristol, RI 02809.