Sunrise, Sunsets, Rainbows - our journey...
Every individual has a story to tell...
COUNTRY BEGINNINGS
Dave & Linda were raised in the San Luis Valley (a high mountain ranching and farming valley at 7,900 feet elevation) of southern Colorado. Life was simple - no malls, fast food places, internet, or smart phone. Instead, life involved precious moments together, often in the outdoors, with immediate family, grandparents, cousins.
Linda's Family and Background
Linda's father, born of Swedish immigrants, rose above his mining background to complete medical school at the University of Colorado. A country doctor and survivor of the Bataan Death March and a prisoner of war, his accomplishments did not stop there: Following the war, Dr. Anderson served on numerous boards and was elected as President of the Colorado Cancer Society and Colorado Medical Society.
Linda was involved in High School Government and Band and attended Cottey College, a girl's school in Nevada, Missouri, University of Nothern Colorado.
Dave's Family
Dave's mother, a spunky and determined rancher and outdoor guide, climbed all of the 14,000 peaks (some twice) in Colorado. She led backpack trips for youth, was a hunting guide, and rode the high mountain summer range to gather cattle. Branding cattle and delivering calves, bucking hay, and irrigating were her typical day at the ranch.
Dave's Grandfather, with an 8th grade education, became a successful businessman, including re-election for many years as a Rio Grande County Commissioner.
Why our upbringing mattered...
From Linda's father, Dr. V.V. Anderson, we learn that regardless of our background (immigrant parents who were miners with limited opportunity for education), that we are capable of stepping outside our environment and create amazing opportunities.
From Dave's mother, Barbara Dickerson Colville, we learn the importance of "spunk and true grit" and embracing life's challenges that ultimately lead to opportunity.
UNIVERSITY EDUCATION, FAMILY AND CAREER
"North to Alaska"
As a teenager, Linda traveled with her parents to Alaska driving the 1400-mile, graveled Alaska-Canada (AlCan) highway. This trip had a lasting impact - with a desire to one day return.
Miller Ski Company & Colorado Mountain College
Aerobatic skiing took Dave to Utah and an opportunity for personal growth and university education. Dave and Linda, after each day's classes, worked at Miller Ski Company and taught skiing to pay for their education. We were grateful to complete 6 years of education with no student loans or debt.
Following their education at Brigham Young University, Dave accepted a position with Colorado Mountain College (Glenwood Springs, Colorado) where Dave taught Outdoor Studies. This included "Outward Bound" type courses, Mountaineering, Nordic Skiing, White Water Rafting, Desert Survival, and leading 2-week "Mountain Orientation" in the Elk Mountain Range and 1-week "Desert Orientation" in the Canyonlands of Southern Utah.
Little Did we Know What Yet Lay Ahead of Us...
Career Change
A career change, resulting from oil shale development in the Western Slope of Colorado, opened the door to additional education, board certifications, and opportunity in "oil and gas".
It also opened the door to:
- Exxon' Colony Shale Oil Project (Parachute, Colorado)
- Wyoming and Colorado Naval Petroleum and Oil Shale Reserve (Casper, Wyoming)
- Alaska North Slope Exploration and Production and experimental Gas-to-Liquids plant
- Middle East (Cairo, Egyptian Petroleum Company; Dubai, UAE Iraq Developments, Doha, Qatar)
- South Africa (Luanda, Angola ultra deep-water exploration and production).
Our years in the Middle East were a highlight - working side-by-side with Egyptian, British, Scottish, Danish, Chinese, Iraqi, Indian, Pakistani, Philippine staff with frequent travel to London and Europe.
This broadened our view of the world and appreciation for people and cultures. We found "really good people" everywhere who were striving to make the most of their lives.
Sesquicentennial Pioneer Trek
Linda joined the 1997 sesquicentennial pioneer trek hand cart company, multi-day enactment, walking the pioneer trail 150 miles (yes...150 miles on foot!) from Green River, Wyoming into the Salt Lake Valley.
OUR FAMILY
Dr. Anderson wrote, as a Prisoner of War, to his wife, Hilda and 2 young daughters: "You are all that I have". For us, this heart-felt phrase "says it all"... Dave & Linda are parents of 7 children and 24 grandchildren. Our children have achieved in college education, careers, and as parents... and are building on our family's legacy.
It is our hope that each generation will do even more with their lives than we have...
RETIREMENT FROM BRITISH PETROLEM AND RETURN TO ALASKA.
Dave officially "retired" from British Petroleum in 2015 and both he and Linda returned to Alaska. Since "retirement", Dave and Linda provided full-time community service. For the past 35 years, Dave has researched, recorded, and preserved for future generations an extensive family history.
YouTube-r & Author
Dave is a "YouTube-r" with DIY videos on e-bikes - "Everything E-bikes".
Linda has devoted and fully immersed herself in our children' and Grandchildren's lives.
Dave has authored two books:
- "Journey to Incident Free - Core Skills and Competencies for Effective Safety Leadership" and was invited to be presenter at the American Society of Safety Professional global learning conference in 2024.
- Biography of Linda's father: "Dr. V.V. Anderson - "Lest we Forget" - Country Physician, Bataan Death March and POW Survivor, Community Leader, and Adventurer.
LEARNING ABOUT LIFE
I am now 74 and Linda is 75. It’s true that "life is short" - but the journey has been nothing "short of amazing"!
Most importantly, we each have a story to tell - it is important to share that story with others as a help in their journey...
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It is our hope... that this forum will uplift, inspire, and be a help with your journey through the "golden years" of your life...
With our very best wishes - to you and yours...
Dave & Linda McCallister
Northern Alpine Glow, LLC
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