Obituary of Paul E. Anderson

Paul E. Anderson, age 74, longtime resident of Iowa City died Sunday, May 18, 2025, at the Bird House Hospice Home of Johnson County.

A gathering time for family and friends will be held at Gay and Ciha Funeral Home on Sunday, June 8th from 1 to 3pm concluding with Masonic Memorial Services beginning at 3pm. Memorial donations can be made in Paul’s honor to a charity of choice. 

Paul was born Jun 19, 1950, in Clinton, Iowa the son of Burdette and Jane (Hill) Anderson.  Following graduation from high school, he attended the University of Iowa.  Here he received his degree in History, a topic that would become a lifelong passion.  His career in healthcare began right after graduation in the early 1970s on the Child Psychiatry Unit at University of Iowa Hospital. He went on to have positions in the Psychiatric Business Office and the Psychiatry Clinics, retiring as a supervisor in 2012. It was at the hospital that he met his lifemate, Carol Van De Weerd, with whom he spent over 50 years.

Paul had a huge family of special, life-long friends who came from his high school Eagle Scout days (Tom Wolf), his college dorm days (Rhinos from Rienow), his early work days (Dave Christensen and Mick Conlon) and many others too numerous to count whom he met along the way at work and later in the Masonic Lodge. 

He joined Iowa City Masonic Lodge in 2001 and served in numerous offices. He was Worshipful Master in 2005 and 2008, served as Treasurer from 2011-2016, and Secretary from 2017-2024. He was very active in the York Rite locally and at the state level where he received the Order of the Purple Cross in 2021 and the Knight Templar Cross of Honor in 2023. He was also active in the Cedar Rapids Valley of the Scottish Rite where he was coronated to the 33rd degree in 2015.

Paul is survived by his wife, Carol, her siblings, and many nieces, nephews and cousins. He was preceded in death by his parents; his sister, Linda Pro and her husband, Wallace; and a step mother, Bernadine Anderson.