Dale K. Anderson [1922-2014]; Retired attorney served in Air Force

Dale K. Anderson began his legal career in criminal defense work.

Dale K. Anderson, a retired trial attorney who represented clients in several states and was a retired colonel in the Air Force Reserve, died Tuesday in Ebeid Hospice Residence, Sylvania. He was 91.

Mr. Anderson, who lived in the Swan Creek Retirement Village in Toledo, fell about a month ago and never fully recovered from his injuries, said his wife, Margaret Anderson.

He was an attorney in private practice from 1950 when he passed the Ohio Bar to the late 1980s, when he retired, said his daughter, Hollis Potere.

He began his law career in criminal defense work and later switched to civil litigation, his family said.

“He loved being an attorney. He never stopped talking. Attorneys are like that. They like to talk,” his wife said.

Mr. Anderson was born May 30, 1922, to Ture and Astrid Anderson. He attended DeVilbiss High School, where he was a member of the 1940 state championship golf team.

He enrolled in Miami University, but enlisted into the U.S. Army Air Corps after Pearl Harbor was bombed in 1941. He was commissioned a lieutenant in October, 1941, and went to Italy to join the 15th Air Force by serving in the unit’s repair squadron.

After his discharge in 1946, he returned to Miami University, and then was accepted into the University of Toledo College of Law. He received his law degree in 1950.

He and three other lawyers — Gordon Holder, Henry Herschel, and David Barkenquast — formed a law firm in 1970, practicing on the 10th floor of the Spitzer Building.

He was a member of the Toledo Bar Association and the Lucas County Bar Association.

According to his family, his clients included Toledo and Michigan residents as well as people living in Florida.

Mr. Anderson continued his military service after the war in the Air Force Reserve, which included active duty. Mrs. Anderson said he reached the rank of colonel and was the local liaison for the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo.

His first wife, Barbara Anderson, died Sept, 19, 1994. He married the former Margaret Draheim on April 3, 1997.

Surviving are his wife, Margaret Anderson; daughters, Hollis A. Potere and Sharon A. Sleight; six grandchildren, and one great granddaughter.

Visitation will begin at 10 a.m. Friday in the Walker Funeral Home, 5155 W. Sylvania Ave., followed by services at 11 a.m.

The family suggests tributes to American Legion Post 335 in Maumee.

Contact Mark Reiter at: markreiter@theblade.com or 419-724-6199.