Donald R. Andersen
Donald R. Andersen, age 88, of Tolar, Texas, formerly of the Kearney/Gibbon area, passed away Thursday, May 21, 2026, at CHI Good Samaritan Hospital in Kearney. Memorial services were held Friday, May 29, at O’Brien Straatmann Redinger Funeral Home in Kearney. Inurnment will follow at Riverside Cemetery in Gibbon with Military honors provided by the American Legion Post #310 in conjunction with the U.S. Air Force Funeral Honors Team.
Memorials are suggested to the family for future designation. Condolences may be shared online at www.osrfh. com. Services are entrusted to O’Brien Straatmann Redinger Funeral and Cremation Services.
Don was born March 20, 1938, in Gibbon to Raymond and Lola (Sheen) Andersen.
He was raised in Gibbon and attended Gibbon High School.
He later enlisted in the U.S.
Air Force, proudly serving from January of 1957, until his honorable discharge in July of 1960. Later that year, Don was united in marriage to Sandra Forst. This union was blessed with two children.
Don worked at Andersen’s Wrecking for a while, then farmed before working at McIlroy’s and later New Holland. After moving to Texas, Don worked as a security guard and later helped with the family ranch and tree removal business. He had a passion for being outdoors and loved to fish and hunt. Scrapping was more than a hobby, it was his life.
Left to cherish his memory are his son, Dean (Kathy) Andersen, of Tolar, Texas; daughter, Amanda Andersen, of Tolar, Texas; grandchild, Leddy (Jimmy) Harris; great-grandchildren, Destiny Garcia and Skylyn Garcia, Angelina Mills, Isabella Matheson, Keegan
(Ashlyn) Harris, Kollin (Delani) Harris, and Rylin Harris; great-great-grand-children, Bexleigh Harris and Waylon Harris; sisters-inlaw, Jeanette Andersen, of Kearney, and Violet Andersen, Sue Andersen and Marlene Mead, of Gibbon; brother-in-law, Dean Follette, of Kearney; as well as many nieces, nephews, extended family and friends.
Don was preceded in death by his parents; brothers, Bob, Jim and Larry Andersen; sisters, Shirley Follette and Betty Judds; and the mother of his children, Sandra Linton.