Letter: Sierra Club loses local conservation leader
To the community,
Well-known conservationist Bob Anderson and his wife, Grace, were on a 70th birthday trip to climb Mount Kilimanjaro in the Serengeti National Park in Kenya when a van accident caused fatal head injuries to Bob and injured Grace.
The couple had completed their successful climb of the over-19,000-foot high mountain.
Bob served as president of the local bi-state Tahoe Area Sierra Club for several years. He was also a member of LTFAC, the Lake Tahoe Federal Advisory Committee to TRPA, as well as a board member of the Washoe Meadows Community Group. In addition, Bob was a board member of the Tahoe Institute for Nature Studies.
Bob had a long history of successful conservation campaigns in Montana before he met and married Grace Proulx of Meyers. The two shared an interest in energy transmission, as well as hiking, backpacking, and climbing. Bob was a former two-term elected member of the Montana Public Utilities Commission.
As a seasoned conservation activist and prominent commissioner, Bob brought his great skills to managing the local Sierra Club group as the issues of the proposed Regional Plan became more and more worrisome regarding the impacts on Lake Tahoe. Bob was very effective and will be remembered by many for his conservation efforts in the Tahoe basin.
The Tahoe Area Sierra Club is stunned by the loss of Bob and our hearts go out to his wife, Grace, who was injured in the accident. We look forward to Grace’s recovery and return to her beloved cabin in Meyers, where she entertained her small grandchildren with great pleasure. Grace has been the leader for planning and producing the club’s fund-raisers for the past four years.
Laurel Ames, Tahoe Area Sierra Club conservation chair
I was very sorry to hear this. Bob was a very genuine guy who liked to talk and listen to you. My prayers go out to Grace for a speedy recovery.
What a sad loss. I hope Grace heals fast.
We are deeply saddened by the loss of Bob Anderson and will miss him greatly. We had the opportunity to get to know Bob and Grace over the last couple of years through a series of events that we co-hosted with the Tahoe Area Chapter of the Sierra Club. He was a soft spoken, kind man with a true passion for the outdoors and he would really light up when talking about issues dear to his heart. Lake Tahoe has lost one of it’s champions and the rest of us will try to fill his shoes. We send our prayers to Grace and hope she makes a speedy recovery and comes home soon.
Peter and Nancy Hussmann, Lake of the Sky Outfitters
I’m shocked and horrified and so sad. Bob was a doll, so nice, sweet, fun, smart, and Grace couldn’t be nicer, smarter, or lovelier. What a terrible loss for all of us. Grace has so much to heal from ~ this is heartbreaking.
Maybe on slightly different pages in environmental viewpoints Bob and I, I had the opportunity to quietly discuss some local matters with him in the past few years. Bob was always receptive to discussion and in a very respectful and considerate manner. I respected him for this and we have lost a very deticated environmentalist in our community, let alone a reasonable man. My condolences to his wife Grace and hopes she heals both physically and spiritually .
Bob was a great, fun & music loving, lake protecting, wilderness creating, ramblin’, travelin’ man. I’m still shocked and in disbelief. Thank you for writing this wonderful tribute Laurel. This leaves a big hole in many hearts, including mine, and in our community.
Was this a van accident or an OHV accident? A “Land Rover that rolled over” while on safari in Africa gives me the impression that this was an OHV accident. Before Laurel Ames wrote the above letter, the Lake Tahoe News linked to a story that implied Bob’s tragic death was an OHV accident: billingsgazette.com/news/state-and-regional/montana/former-psc-member-dies-in-accident-in-africa/article_5caaed8c-4281-5e87-b399-a47b157dd8b4.html#ixzz2hqq8YAMX