Ralph Anderson

Rathaeul “Ralph” Anderson Jr., 79, passed away April 23, 2024 at Del Sol Medical Center, El Paso. He was born August 11, 1944, in Clayton, Alabama, to Rathaeul and Allene (Glover) Anderson. Ralph was a proud veteran who served in the U.S. Army in Germany and Vietnam. In 1970, Captain Ralph Anderson was assigned to Fort Bliss to complete the Advanced Course at the Army Air Defense Center (better known as Building 2) where he met Marylin Ann Paxton, who worked there as a keypunch operator. Their courtship was short and they married on March 6, 1971. Ralph and Marylin’s marriage was blessed with two children: Aimee Ruth, born in 1976; and Robert Alan, born in 1985.

In addition to his military service, Ralph's career included several years in banking, mortgage banking, and education. He received a BBA and MBA from UTEP and a Masters in Education from Sul Ross University in Alpine, TX. He taught business courses at Eastwood High School from 1997 – 2011, with a leave of absence in 2003-2004 when the Army called him back to active duty once more at age 59 to serve at Aberdeen, MD.
 
Since retiring from teaching, Ralph and Marylin enjoyed lots of long road trips to Kansas to visit Aimee and Adam and their grandsons, to visit Robert who moved from Arizona to Satanta, KS, to Denver CO, and then to Houston, TX, and to visit other family in Colorado, Virginia, and his home state of Alabama. Their theme song was "On the Road Again."

Ralph became quite active in the Gideons International and held several positions in the El Paso Camp and at the state level in Texas. At the 2024 State Convention of the Texas Gideons on April 12, he was elected to serve as Treasurer of the Texas Gideons. But on April 23 he was promoted once again when God called his "good and faithful servant" to come home.  We will grieve for a while but we know without a doubt that we will be reunited someday.

Survivors include his wife Marylin of the home; daughter, Aimee (Adam) Wutka of Great Bend, KS; son, Robert (Danielle) Anderson of Houston, TX; four grandsons, Nathan, Ben, Isaac, and Gabriel Wutka, all of Great Bend, KS; three brothers, Jimmy (Cynthia) Anderson of Orange Park, FL, Jack (Julene) Anderson of Ocean Springs, MS, and Tom (Janie) Waters of Citronelle, Alabama; sister Louise (Gil) Myles of Semmes, AL; brother-in-law, Larry Paxton of Chesapeake, VA; aunt, Mavis Walker of Montgomery, AL; and numerous nieces, nephews, and cousins.

Visitation will be from 4:00 PM to 8:00 PM, Tuesday, April 30, 2024 at Sunset Funeral Homes - East, 750 N. Carolina. Visitation will be held from 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM with a Funeral Service at 11:00 AM, Wednesday, May 1, 2024 at Scotsdale Baptist Church, 10015 Lockerbie, Rev. Herb Mims and Rev. Adam Wutka officiating. Interment will follow at 1:30 PM at Fort Bliss National Cemetery, 5200 Fred Wilson.

The family encourages memorials to be given in memory of Ralph to your local camp of The Gideons International, or online at gideons.org/donate.