Family honors Air Force veteran Derwin Anderson Jr. after he died in June flash floods

SAN ANTONIO — The family of Derwin Anderson Junior remembered his life Monday as they laid him to rest.

Anderson’s car was one of many swept away in the floods that killed over a dozen people earlier this month.

The 43-year-old leaves behind his children and a family who bid him one last goodbye as an Air Force veteran.

Anderson served in the Air Force for over a decade while leading his family. Today, they celebrated his life.

He was remembered for serving his country, but Anderson Junior served his family first. This is how his oldest daughter remembers him best.

“He was the kind of person who would put a smile on your face even if you didn’t need one,” Anderson’s daughter said at his celebration of life.

Choosing to celebrate, rather than mourn the loss of the man they knew as giving, Anderson’s family, including his six children, recalled how loving he was.

“Because of the man he was and he still is in our hearts…I can stand here and be the woman I am growing into being,” his daughter said.

On June 12, Anderson was killed in the floodwaters that took the lives of over a dozen people.

His car – located at the Callaghan and highway 90 area that morning. Anderson was nowhere to be found.

“At the end of the day, he still lives through us and through the legacy he left behind, he’s the reason I stay strong,” his daughter said. “Not only do I live up to his expectations, but the expectations I planted into myself.”