A longtime Battleford resident for whom building is a passion has found his community building efforts recognized with the honour of 2015 Citizen of the Year.
“It’s a great honour, really,” said Floyd Andersen, this year’s recipient.
“I never expected something like that in my life. It’s really something to get that honour.”
Andersen got the news in mid-December in a phone call from Glen Gantefoer of the Citizen of the Year committee. And like others who have accepted the honour in the past, Andersen said he was surprised it was he who was picked.
“I never volunteered for everything to get awarded for whatever I do. I do it because I love to do things for the people and the community.”
His community involvement is extensive, and many of those efforts are rooted in his interest in carpentry and woodworking. His business Andersen Construction does woodworking and contracting work.
His family has been heavily involved in woodworking for decades. Floyd’s grandfather Anders was involved in building from about 1927 on, and his father Chris continued the family tradition.
That legacy is being honoured — and shared — with the construction of a new building at the Fred Light Museum to house the collection of vintage tools that Anders and Chris used.
Figuring out what to do with the old tool collection was something on Andersen’s mind for a number of years.
“They sat in my mom’s garage for years,” said Floyd. “And she passed away and we had to sell the place. And I just couldn’t bring myself to just throw them on an auction sale and get rid of them. And I’ve been thinking about this for probably about six years with the Fred Light Museum.”
The tools were donated and so was the building. In May, several generations of the Andersen family including Floyd himself were on site to put the building up, something Floyd and his wife Joan point to as a highlight of their year.
Andersen says that effort was probably the big reason he was picked as Citizen of the Year this year. But there have been other efforts in which Andersen played a key part.
He has been heavily involved in Scouts Canada for 23 years.
“I was a Scout when I was younger myself, and I enjoyed it. I got involved when my son joined Beavers. I got to be a leader. And then I just moved on right through and he finished his Scouting movement. I just loved it, so I stayed on with it.”
His involvement includes being involved in Service Corps out of Anglin Lake, taking on an advisor role there while the Scouts themselves run the camp. He’s found it a way to pass on his skills and knowledge to the younger generation. “We did a lot of woodworking, crafts in the Scouting movement,” he said.
Through those Scouting efforts he’s been able to go to Jamborees from coast to coast, taking youth to Prince Edward Island for one jamboree and to the Pacific jamborees in British Columbia.
In addition to his major donation this year to the Fred Light Museum, Floyd has also been active on the Fred Light Museum board, where he is chair.
Part of that involvement included helping with the Battleford fire hall construction. He also put together a Scouting display at the museum.
Andersen has been active in the Historic Battleford Lions Club for 13 years and volunteered his time to help build the playhouses that were raffled off as part of the playhouse raffle.
He was on Battleford’s Parks and Recreation board in the late 1990s, then was involved with the Battlefords Promotion Society for four years. His big project there was the portable stage used and seen at various functions, such as BridgeFest.
When an earthquake disaster struck in Haiti, Andersen also assisted youth in building jelly bean dispensers and sold them, raising $1,000 for Help for Haiti.
His previous awards include two Scouting “medals of good service,” a Medal of Merit in 2009 and Centennial Medal in 2008. His company, Andersen Construction, also received the BBEX Award for Community Involvement in 2002, in recognition of his efforts that year to fundraise to send Scouts to Prince Edward Island for the Canadian jamboree.
Floyd’s commitment is described in nomination papers submitted by Dave Rogers and Walter Houk to the Citizen of the Year committee.
“When examining Floyd’s involvement in and love for his community it is reassuring to see an individual take such a complete approach to helping his community. By being involved with the youth and helping to build strong future citizens by their role model who was disinterested in receiving recognition for his good deeds, to helping to promote and build his community with his work on the promotion society and recreation board, to finally preserving the life, culture and history of his community in the museum so that future residents can better understand and enjoy their heritage and beginnings.”
2015 has proven to be a big year for the Andersens. Floyd and Joan’s first grandson, Leonix, was born to his son Leslie and daughter-in-law Meranda in January.
Then in December, Joan and Floyd won the 50/50 prize in the Battlefords Union Hospital Foundation draw, with a prize amount of $52,000.
Now, they are celebrating another big prize — Citizen of the Year.
As Joan points out, the honour is something Floyd still gets emotional about, so much so that they both wonder if Floyd will be able to get through the speech at the Citizen of the Year banquet scheduled for the new year without the tears flowing.
“At the banquet I don’t know if I can make the speech or not,” Floyd admits.
