Joe Anderson

Joe Anderson's lifetime journey in pursuit of waterfowl and to support Delta began with a single step. It wasn't his own. It was his father's.

Growing up in Topeka, Kansas, some of Anderson's fondest memories are of lying awake in his bedroom. At the sound of his father's pre-dawn footfall on the first tread of the staircase, he would leap up, get dressed and sprint to the kitchen. They were headed to the woods to go squirrel hunting!

So began an incredible journey that led Anderson, now 79, around the world in pursuit of wingshooting adventures - duck hunting being a favorite. He laughingly remembers his father keeping English pointers.

He said, "We always had a pair of pointers - a liver and white and a brown. Over the generations, the liver-and-white was always 'Prince', the brown was always 'Fido'. He never changed names; just changed the dogs."

After high school, Anderson received an appointment to the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, where he earned a degree in math and engineering. He became an infantry officer in the 82nd Airborne and served two tours with the 1st Cavalry in Vietnam. Anderson and the infantry platoon he commanded were the subject of the Oscar-winning documentary "The Anderson Platoon" in 1967. He earned two silver stars, five bronze stars, three Army Commendation medals, and 11 Air medals. He resigned his commission after 13 years and early selection for promotion to Lieutenant Colonel.

Following military service, Anderson began his career with General Motors. He worked his way through the executive ranks for 13 years, reaching general director of the body hardware business unit of GM's Inland Fisher Guide Division-leading 7,000 employees and an annual revenue of $1 billion. He resigned to become president and CEO of Composite Energy Management Systems and currently is majority owner and CEO of The Anderson Group (TAG) Holdings, with acquisitions and holdings in North America, Korea and China in the automotive, heavy equipment, aerospace, and defense industries.

He has also received two master's degrees from UCLA, attended the United States Army Command and General Staff College, and graduated from the Harvard Advanced Management program. He holds numerous positions governing business, government, professional and nonprofit organizations, including chairman of the board of the National Recreation Foundation.

Yet, any conversation with the longtime Detroit-area resident quickly turns to his most recent or upcoming wingshooting adventures. Anderson added waterfowling to upland hunting when he joined the auto industry in 1979. Colleagues invited him to join their hunts, and he was quickly hooked.

His love of hunting and travel has taken him to Denmark, England, South Africa, Argentina, Scotland, Iceland, and the Canadian prairies. But his perfect day of duck hunting in North America remains the memories of hunting Bradley Farms in Chatham, Ontario, not far from his home.

He recalls, "Climbing into the blind before daylight, experiencing those golden moments, often taking a limit by 9 a.m. Those times with a friend in the blind with a guide and a dog, the ducks are working ... it doesn't get any better than that."

He laments that during the pandemic the family who owns Bradley Farms decided to cease hunting operations.

To the question, "What's your favorite duck?"

"Canvasbacks!" he says.

While Anderson has given major financial support for the whole of Delta's mission, HunteR3 strikes especially close to home.

He said, "For me it's all about hunter recruitment, particularly having youth involved. And in my case, as an African-American, getting other African-Americans involved. That has not been much the case in the past, but in the last few months I've encountered a number of African-American hunters in the Detroit area ... more so than in the past."

His introduction to Delta Waterfowl came through other Detroit-area Delta members and a guide at Bradley Farms-one who later became a Delta development director, Scott McGuigan. Since then, the two hunt together often.

McGuigan said, "Joe is one of the most enthusiastic waterfowlers I know. It's been my pleasure to hunt with him across North America. I don't know if it was serendipity or the duck gods were listening, but Joe made a serious commitment to Delta right before we enjoyed the canvasback hunt of a lifetime! Karma? Could be! In a blur of waterfowl hunts over my career, that day with Joe is etched in my mind forever." -Bill Miller